“Around 5 am, several Ukrainian soldiers landed on the island from a motor boat and took pictures with the flag. An aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces immediately launched a high-precision missile attack on Snake Island, as a result of which some of the Ukrainian military personnel were destroyed,” said Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, earlier posted a video on Telegram of three soldiers raising a large Ukrainian flag on the island, from which Russian forces withdrew on June 30 after being heavily shelled by Ukrainian artillery. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register The tiny island, seized by Russia from Ukraine at the start of the war in February, is strategically important because of its proximity to sea lanes near the Ukrainian port of Odessa. Russia said it withdrew from Snake Island last week as a “gesture of goodwill” to show it was not obstructing United Nations efforts to open a humanitarian corridor to allow grain to be transported from Ukraine. Ukraine said it had driven out Russian forces after an artillery and missile attack. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Reporting by Reuters Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
