MELITOPOL, April 24. /TASS/. The Ukrainian armed forces have strengthened their ranks and deployed another 12,000 servicemen near the town of Gulyaipole, which is located directly on the line of contact in the Zaporozhye Region, Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the 'We Are Together with Russia’ movement, told TASS on Monday.
"Some 12,000 Ukrainian fighters have been transferred to the Gulyaipole area, their number has increased significantly. They are now right on the line of contact, along with the build-up of forces on Kiev-controlled territory in the settlements of Bogatyr, Solenoye, and the city of Zaporozhye itself," Rogov said.
According to him, the transfer of troops may indicate the preparation of a Ukrainian offensive in this particular area of the Zaporozhye line of contact.
Rogov told TASS last Tuesday that Ukrainian troops could begin active operations on the contact line in the Zaporozhye Region within a week. He theorized that in the event of an offensive, Ukrainian units would avoid urban fighting due to a lack of forces. According to the official, they will try to break through to the Sea of Azov east of Melitopol in order to cut the land corridor to Crimea. In late March, Rogov told TASS that Ukrainian forces had gathered up to 75,000 troops in the Zaporozhye area already after an attempted offensive on March 23 that was thwarted by Russian forces. Up to 400 Ukrainian fighters were eliminated during the attack.