DONETSK, September 17. /TASS/. Russian forces repelled four attempts by Ukrainian troops to conduct reconnaissance of Russian positions in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) in the Krasny Liman area, DPR’s acting head Denis Pushilin said on Sunday.

"During the past day, the enemy made several attempts (at least four) to probe our defense. It has failed, being repelled to its initial positions. However, we see that in this area the enemy has possibilities to use reserves from Kramatorsk and Slavyansk. The situation is under control," he said.

The Ukrainian army has been making futile attempts to stage an offensive since the beginning of June. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on September 12 that since early June Ukraine has lost 71,500 troops, 543 tanks and nearly 18,000 combat armored vehicles. According to Putin, Ukrainian forces are not seeing success in any area.