MELITOPOL, August 3. /TASS/. Russian forces destroyed the personnel of three Ukrainian assault brigades preparing for an offensive in the Zaporozhye Region, acting Regional Governor Yevgeny Balitsky said on Thursday.

"Until four o’clock in the morning, the enemy was accumulating forces with a strength of three assault brigades for offensive operations in areas near the settlements of Malaya Tokmachka and Novopokrovka. The enemy forces were struck by artillery fire and the enemy actually lost the entire personnel of the brigades while those who survived scattered through the forest belt," the regional head wrote on his Telegram channel.

Russian forces also thwarted the enemy’s advance near the settlement of Pyatikhatki in the Zaporozhye Region, he said.

"Also, the enemy’s infantry was spotted near Pyatikhatki. The squad’s artillery struck the enemy, causing it to move back," Balitsky said.

As the Russian Defense Ministry reported, the Ukrainian army has been making unsuccessful offensive attempts since June 4. Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu reported on July 11 that the Ukrainian army’s losses had exceeded 26,000 since Kiev launched its counter-offensive. Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed that Ukrainian troops had failed to achieve any success in any of the frontline areas.