Ukrainian forces raised their national flag on a recaptured Black Sea island on Thursday in a symbol of defiance against Moscow, but Russian forces consolidated gains in eastern Ukraine and probed the defences of potential new targets.
Moscow responded to the flag-raising ceremony fast. It said one of its warplanes had struck Snake Island shortly afterwards and destroyed part of the Ukrainian detachment there.
The tiny island, located about 140 km (90 miles) south of the Ukrainian port of Odesa, is strategically important as it guards sea lanes. Russia abandoned it at the end of June in what it said was a gesture of goodwill – a victory for Ukraine that Kyiv hoped could loosen Moscow’s blockade of Ukrainian ports.
Images released by Ukraine’s interior ministry on Thursday showed three Ukrainian soldiers raising the blue and yellow national flag on a patch of ground on Snake Island next to the remains of a flattened building.
“Glory to Ukrainian soldiers,” the ministry said on Twitter.
Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian president’s chief of staff, suggested the moment was one that would be repeated across Ukraine in the coming months.
“The flag of Ukraine is on Snake Island. Ahead of us are many more such videos from Ukrainian cities that are currently under temporary occupation,” he wrote on Telegram.
Russia’s missile strike on the island’s new residents had caused significant damage to its dock, Odesa regional administration spokesman Serhiy Bratchuk said.
Bratchuk said a further two Russian missiles had hit and destroyed two grain stores in his region containing 35 tons of grain.
In Moscow, the Russian defence ministry said several Ukrainian troops had landed on the island before dawn and taken pictures with the flag.
“An aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces immediately launched a strike with high-precision missiles on Snake Island, as a result of which part of the Ukrainian military personnel was destroyed,” ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.
Snake Island became a symbol of Ukraine’s refusal to bend to Russia’s will early in the war after Ukrainian forces stationed there delivered a salty riposte when asked by the commander of a Russian ship to surrender.
