TASS, September 16. Ukraine’s armed forces have drastically intensified the operation of artillery in the area of responsibility of the Terek volunteer Cossack brigade near Soledar, and are also amassing troops, which may imply their plans to mount an offensive in that area, the brigade’s commander with the soldier name Batya (Dad) told TASS.

"What is typical of our defense area is very active work of the enemy’s artillery, especially recently. At night, there is the enemy’s large movement and concentration of equipment and forces. At night you can hear the buzz of heavy equipment, such as tanks, armored personnel carriers and motor vehicles. We are currently on defense, getting ready to repel attacks if they are attempted in our area. They are constantly trying to probe the location of our weaponry, we feel or expect certain offensive actions in our area," Batya said.

The officer added that in other areas, where the Ukrainian forces are attempting to advance, they do not have any particular results, so they may be seeking new areas where they hope to get some effect from offensive operations.