Russia still eyes Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa, says deputy head of Zelenskyy's office

Brigadier General Pavlo Palisa, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, has said Russian forces have not abandoned plans to seize Ukrainian territory, including the regional centres of Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa.

Source: Palisa in an interview with Donbas.Realii (Donbas Realities), a regional project of Radio Liberty

Quote: "I see Moscow's ambitious plans. They have not given up on capturing Donetsk Oblast. They still plan to create a buffer zone in Kharkiv and Sumy oblasts. They are looking to push as far as possible in Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts and create conditions that would enable them to claim [the cities of] Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa.

As things stand, I do not objectively see the Russians having the capability to carry out these plans over the next six months."

Details: Palisa said Russian forces had occupied "less than one per cent of Ukraine's total territory" in 2025, "at the cost of more than 450,000 of their troops".

He said Russia would need "roughly a year and a half" to occupy the 6,000 sq km of Donetsk Oblast still under Ukrainian control and would require "resources equivalent to the current size of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation's grouping on the territory of Ukraine".

Quote: "It will be very difficult for them. It will not be anywhere near as fast as they want."

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