The island of 100 acres is of strategic importance, 129 km off the southern coast of Ukraine in the Black Sea.
Russian forces have announced they are leaving Fidonisi A few days after Ukraine launched a barrage of rocket attacks on their facilities. The island of 100 acres is of strategic importance, 129 km off the southern coast of Ukraine in the Black Sea.
“On June 30, in a show of goodwill, the Russian military fulfilled the objectives set on Snake Island and withdrew its guard from there.”supports the Russian Ministry of Defense, adding that this move will facilitate the export of grain from Ukraine.
Russia occupied the island at the beginning of the war, and had largely managed to maintain control despite periodic attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces. But Ukraine launched a major offensive last week, destroying a number of Russian supply stations and anti-aircraft systems with a barrage of missiles.
The withdrawal of Russian forces represents a significant loss for Putin’s forces both strategically and in terms of prestige. The head of the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Andriy Yermak, posted a happy message as soon as he learned the news.
“CAMBUM! There are no more Russian troops in Fidonisi Our Armed Forces have done an excellent job. More CAMPOUS news will follow” wrote features on Twitter.
KABOOM!
No Russian troops on the Snake Island anymore. Our Armed Forces did a great job.
More kaboom news to follow. All will be 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/ItdP3oQvHK– Andriy Yermak (@AndriyYermak) June 30, 2022
Meanwhile, the head of the United States Intelligence Service Avril Haynes warned that Vladimir Putin was still seeking to occupy most of Ukraine. However, Moscow’s troops have been so weakened by the fierce fighting that the United States believes that territorial gains will be a time-consuming affair and that “The picture remains quite bleak.”
“This means that the war could last for a long time,” she told the BBC.
In March, Moscow resumed its efforts to occupy Donbas, in eastern Ukraine, after failing to occupy Kyiv and other cities. Mr Putin still has the same goals he had at the beginning of the conflict, the US intelligence chief said, adding that he would occupy most of Ukraine. But, he clarified, Russia is unlikely to achieve this goal soon.
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