Ukraine border guards remind Russia Snake Island is again theirs

This weekend, Ukrainian border guards installed a new sign on Snake Island, marking the early hours of Russia’s invasion when a comrade on the vital Black Sea rock refused to surrender to a cruiser.

“The next border sign will be installed in our Ukrainian Crimea after its liberation by the defence forces of Ukraine,” a uniformed man said, standing before a post painted blue and yellow like the country’s flag, in a video shared on Facebook late on Saturday by the head of the border service, Serhiy Deineko.

In the early hours of the 24 February 2022 attack, Russian officials on the Black Sea Fleet flagship Moskva radioed Ukrainian guards stationed there and told them to surrender or perish.

One of them said, “Russian warship, go fuck yourself.”

The phrase became a national catchphrase, appearing on billboards, T-shirts, and even a postage stamp in Ukraine.

The important island looks out over water lanes leading to Odesa, Ukraine’s principal Black water port.

Two Ukrainian missiles attacked the Moskva, the largest battleship lost in action in 40 years, on 14 April, 2022. According to Russia, one sailor was killed in an accident. Western analysts assume that almost half of the 450-person crew died at sea.

On June 30, Russia abandoned Snake Island after taking heavy losses trying to defend it. It called its withdrawal another “goodwill gesture.”

Russia still holds swathes of territory in eastern and southern Ukraine. However, Ukraine is pressing ahead with a counteroffensive in which it claimed further progress on Saturday.

“Historical justice has been restored,” Deineko said in his Facebook post. “Ukraine will definitely win!!!”