On the 500th day after the Russian invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has traveled to Snake Island, the Black Sea rock made famous when Ukrainian defenders defied a Russian battleship. Zelensky thanked all the soldiers who had fought against the Russians in the past sixteen months.
“Today we are on Snake Island, which will never be conquered by the occupiers, just like all of Ukraine, because we are the land of the brave,” Zelensky stated in an undated video message posted on social media on Saturday.
Snake Island became known shortly after the invasion in February 2022 when the Ukrainian garrison resisted the Russian capture of the strategically located island. When the Russian warship Moskva called on the defenders to surrender, they replied with a terse “Russian warship, fuck off.” The island was later taken, but recaptured by Ukraine in June 2022.
On the 500th day after the invasion of Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu inspected troops and the training of new units, his ministry said on Saturday. Video footage on the social media channel Telegram showed Shoigu in military attire as he observed soldiers at a firing range.
It was Shoigu’s first public appearance since the failed uprising of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner mercenaries last month. Prigozhin had called for the resignation of Shoygu and Chief of Staff Valeri Gerasimov over the disappointing results of Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Editorial
AFP – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Snake Island.
2023-07-08 08:48:45
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