MELITOPOL, April 26. /TASS/. The Ukrainian armed forces are redeploying three brigades, including one airborne brigade, to the vicinity of Orekhov and Gulyaypole; they are expected to arrive before the end of this week, Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the We Are Together With Russia movement, told TASS on Wednesday.

"The redeployment of Ukrainian fighters to a section of the line of engagement near Orekhov and Gulyaypole is now underway: the 46th airborne brigade and 116th and 118th territorial defense brigades. These brigades are being redeployed to augment the existing 12,000 troops now located in this area. The goal was set to redeploy all of them before the end of this week," Rogov said.

He clarified that these Ukrainian forces are being redeployed from Pavlograd in the Dnepropetrovsk Region, as well as from the Poltava Region, where the 46th and 116th brigades are permanently billeted.

On Monday, Rogov told TASS that Ukraine has increased its battlegroup in direct proximity to the contact line near Gulyaypole to 12,000 men under arms. This may indicate that an offensive is likely being prepared in this specific area of the Zaporozhye Region. According to Rogov, should Ukrainian forces attempt to mount an offensive, they would have to avoid urban combat due to the shortage of personnel and would likely attempt to execute a dash to the Sea of Azov, east of Melitopol, in a bid to cut Russia’s land bridge to Crimea.