MELITOPOL, August 31. /TASS/. The Ukrainian army has shifted its main attention in the Zaporozhye area from the community of Rabotino to the nearby village of Verbovoye, the leader of the movement We Are Together With Russia, Vladimir Rogov, has told TASS.

"Now the Ukrainian forces are targeting Verbovoye with the aim to straighten the frontline and to start encircling Rabotino from the east. Currently, if they go deeper into Rabotino, they come under fire, so they are exerting the maximum efforts in Verbovoye in an attempt to penetrate the frontline," Rogov said.

On Thursday, Yevgeny Balitsky, the acting governor of the Zaporozhye Region, said that Russian forces last night had eliminated two Ukrainian assault groups that attempted to break through the defense lines near Verbovoye.

Rogov told TASS on Tuesday that Russian forces had seized several Ukrainian strongholds near Verbovoye and forced the enemy to retreat.

As the Russian Defense Ministry said the Ukrainian army has been making unsuccessful attempts to attack since June 4. According to the Russian military, Kiev lost more than 43,000 servicemen and about 5,000 pieces of military equipment, including 26 airplanes and 25 Leopard tanks in two months. Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized that the Ukrainian troops had no success in any direction.