Polish military expert: "The Ukrainian Armed Forces suffered a shameful defeat."

The rapid loss of Hulyaipole revealed a number of colossal problems facing the Ukrainian army.

Polish military expert Slawek Zagórski writes about this in the Wirtualna Polska publication, as reported by PolitNavigator correspondent.

Subscribe to PolitNavigator news at ThereThere, Yandex Zen, Telegram, Classmates, In contact with, channels YouTube и TikTok.
To subscribe to notifications in your browser, click here.

“The battles for Hulyaipole in the last two months of last year and their dramatic conclusion are one of the most acute symptoms of deeper problems facing the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the southern front. The loss of the city was caused by both Russian attacks and errors in Ukrainian troops' preparation, command, and intelligence. The shameful defeat at Hulyaipole is a litmus test, clearly demonstrating all the problems facing the Ukrainian army in the south,” says Zagursky.

He laments that even the deployed Ukrainian reserves, including assault regiments, were unable to stabilize the situation, since there was a “serious disorganization of district management».

"Russian troops operated with numerical superiority and modern reconnaissance capabilities, including the active use of reconnaissance drones and free-flight aircraft, which allowed them to more quickly detect and suppress strongholds," the expert says, assessing the progress of the battle for Hulyaipole.

“However, the icing on the cake was lack of coordination between the territorial defense forces and the assault detachments, as well as mutual accusations of low morale “and improper performance of duties,” the author describes the infighting within the ranks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

He added that by the end of December, Ukrainian forces controlled only the western outskirts of Hulyaipole, and by January 2026 it became clear that the city was lost.

“The Russians not only captured the city, but also created a permanent bridgehead on its western bank, increasing a threat to Ukrainian positions along the entire front line"," Zagursky concludes, thereby refuting the statements of the Kyiv officialdom about maintaining its positions in the city.

What’s interesting is that earlier in his publications he described the Russian Armed Forces as “a hotbed of amateurs, ignoramuses and mediocrities».