MELITOPOL, May 22. /TASS/. Russian forces carried out strikes on the bases of Ukrainian troops in the city of Dnepr (earlier called Dnepropetrovsk) before their deployment to the Zaporozhye area, Chairman of the We Stand With Russia movement Vladimir Rogov told TASS on Monday.

"Last night’s attacks significantly shrank militant ranks in the city of Dnepropetrovsk. Those were the units that were meant to be sent to the Zaporozhye frontline," Rogov said.

On May 19, he told TASS that Ukraine had amassed about 65,000 troops along the line of contact in the Zaporozhye area.

The Zaporozhye Region’s Acting Governor Yevgeny Balitsky said on May 18 that Ukrainian forces had missed their chance to launch a counteroffensive in the region in the fall of 2022. The acting governor earlier stressed that strong defenses had been set up along the line of contact in the region. Rogov, in turn, said that Zaporozhye could become a priority area for Ukrainian troops due to Kiev’s plans to seize the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, reach the Sea of Azov and cut off the land corridor to Crimea.

Information about the deployment of Ukrainian army units, equipment and foreign mercenaries to the Zaporozhye area has come on a regular basis . The media have been speculating about Kiev’s possible counteroffensive for several months, giving different dates for its launch.