Benutzer:Prügelprinz/Attack on Snake Island
Vorlage:Short description Vorlage:About Vorlage:Use dmy dates Vorlage:Infobox military conflict On 24 February 2022, the first day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Snake Island, a Ukrainian island in the Black Sea also known as Zmiinyi Island, was attacked and captured by the Russian Navy, along with its entire garrison.
The attack was widely publicized when an audio clip of Russian cruiser Moskva hailing the island's garrison over the radio demanding their surrender and being told "Russian warship, go fuck yourself" (Vorlage:Lang-rus) in response went viral, along with initial inaccurate reports of the garrison's deaths.Vorlage:Update inline[1][2] Later on, it emerged that a civilian search and rescue ship trying to evacuate the soldiers was also captured along with the garrison. The ship, its crew, and at least one soldier were subsequently freed in prisoner exchanges.
Background
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]Snake Island is a small rocky island off the southern coast of Ukraine, strategically located off Romania and at the edge of Ukrainian territorial waters in the Black Sea.[3][4] The only settlement on the island is Bile, built in 2007.[5]
In August 2021, as Russian forces built up around Ukraine, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a press event on the island, during which he said: "This island, like the rest of our territory, is Ukrainian land, and we will defend it with all our might."[4]
Attack
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]On 24 February 2022, the first day of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine,Vorlage:R Ukrainian State Border Guards announced about 18:00 local time that Snake Island had come under attack by Russian Navy ships.[6] The cruiser Moskva and patrol ship Vasily Bykov bombarded the island with their deck guns.[7] Vorlage:External media
When the Russian warship identified itself and ordered the Ukrainian soldiers stationed on the island to surrender, a soldier replied "Russian warship, go fuck yourself." (Vorlage:Lang-rus).[8][9] An audio clip of the exchange was first shared by Ukrainian government official Anton Herashchenko,[10] then widely publicized by Ukrayinska Pravda, and later verified as authentic by Ukrainian government sources.[11][12]
One Ukrainian soldier live-streamed the moment that the Russian warship opened fire.[13] Later in the evening, the State Border Guard Service said that communication with the island had been lost.[14] At 22:00 (01:00 Moscow Time, UTC+2), service officials announced that Russian forces had captured the island following a naval and air bombardment that destroyed all infrastructure on the island.[15][16] After the bombardment, a detachment of Russian soldiers landed and took control of Snake Island.[17]
The Russian government reported that on 25 February 2022, a squadron of 16 boats of the Ukrainian Navy attacked Russian vessels off Snake Island, also claiming that it sank six of the Ukrainian boats.[18] The Russian government further accused the United States of providing intelligence support to the Ukrainian squadron during the action. The United States denied any involvement.[19]
On 26 February 2022, Ukrainian authorities announced that the civilian search and rescue ship Sapphire had been captured by the Russian Navy off Snake Island.[20]
Status of Ukrainian soldiers and civilian sailors
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]Ukrainian government sources initially stated that 13 border guards, representing the entirety of the Ukrainian military presence on the island, were killed after refusing to surrender.[21][22] Zelenskyy announced that the border guards would be posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine.[9]
Russian defence media presented an alternative version of events, claiming that 82 Ukrainian soldiers had been taken prisoner after surrendering voluntarily,[12] and had been taken to Sevastopol.[23] Russian ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov claimed that the prisoners had been signing pledges promising not to continue military action against Russia, and would be released soon.[24]
The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine later announced that the guards might instead have been captured,[25] based on the Russian reports that they were being held as prisoners of war.[26] On 26 February 2022 it issued a statement saying that they believed "that all Ukrainian defenders of Zmiiniy Island may be alive".[23] On 28 February 2022, the Ukrainian Navy posted on its Facebook page that all the border guards of the island were alive and detained by the Russian Navy.[27][28]
Release
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]On 24 March 2022, Sapphire and 19 Ukrainian civilian sailors were released by Russia in a prisoner exchange. 10 prisoners of war were released in the same exchange, and Ukraine stated that Deputy Prime Minister Vereshchuk was working towards the release of Snake Island prisoners particularly.[29]
On 30 March, it was reported that the soldier who made the remark toward the ship was released in a prisoner exchange, and subsequently awarded a Ukrainian medal.[30]
Legacy
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Stamp_of_Ukraine_s1985.jpg/220px-Stamp_of_Ukraine_s1985.jpg)
The Ukrainian border guards' final communication before the attack, "Russian warship, go fuck yourself!", went viral and became a rallying cry for Ukrainians and their supporters around the world.[31] The Week compared the phrase to "Remember the Alamo" from the 19th-century Texas Revolution.[32]
In March 2022, the Ukrainian government announced that a postage stamp honoring the soldiers on Snake Island would be released. In a public vote, Ukrainian artist Boris Groh's design of a Ukrainian soldier standing on a beach and giving the finger to a passing Russian warship received the most votes and was selected.[33]
On 13 April 2022, the warship Moskva that was used in the attack and that the Ukrainians had told to 'go fuck yourself' exploded and burned, according to Ukraine as a result of being hit by two anti-ship missiles fired from offshore in or near Odesa.[34] On April 14, the Russians attempted to tow the damaged ship in the direction of Sevastopol but she ultimately sank before she reached port.[35][36]
See also
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]References
[Bearbeiten | Quelltext bearbeiten]Vorlage:2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Snake Island Category:Snake Island (Black Sea) Category:Military history of the Black Sea Category:Naval operations and battles Snake Island Category:Southern Ukraine offensive Category:February 2022 events in Ukraine Category:Naval battles post-1945
- ↑ ВМС ЗС України. (deutsch: Ukrainian Navy). In: facebook.com. ВМС ЗС України, 28. Februar 2022, abgerufen am 28. Februar 2022.
- ↑ Ukrainian Navy confirms Snake Island soldiers are alive, POWs. In: jpost.com. The Jerusalem Post, 28. Februar 2022, abgerufen am 28. Februar 2022.
- ↑ Aaron Reich: 13 Ukraine soldiers tell Russia 'go f*** yourself' in defiant last stand In: The Jerusalem Post. Abgerufen am 5. März 2022
- ↑ a b Vorlage:Cite magazine
- ↑ Viktoriya Veselova: ? (Originaltitel: uk:Острів, де планували деокупацію Криму: як виглядав Зміїний до війни з Росією, deutsch: The island where the deoccupation of Crimea was planned: what Zmiiny looked like before the war with Russia) In: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 25 January 2022. Abgerufen im 26 February 2022 (ukrainisch).
- ↑ Vorlage:Cite tweet
- ↑ Russian Navy Captures Ukraine's Outpost on Snake Island In: The Maritime Executive, 24 February 2022. Abgerufen im 25 February 2022
- ↑ Valentina Romanenko: ? (Originaltitel: uk:"Русский корабль, иди на х.й!": захисники Зміїного відповіли ворогові, deutsch: "Russian ship, go fuck yourself": Defenders of the Serpent responded to the enemy) In: Ukrayinska Pravda, 25 February 2022. Abgerufen im 28 February 2022 (ukrainisch).
- ↑ a b Tim Lister, Josh Pennington: Audio emerges appearing to be of Ukrainian fighters defending island from Russian warship. In: CNN. 24. Februar 2022, abgerufen am 5. März 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ @Pravda_Gerashchenko: Pravda Gerashchenko. (Originaltitel: ru:Русский корабль предлагает гарнизону острова Змеиный сдаться. Был послан на хуй !). via Telegram, abgerufen am 5. März 2022.
- ↑ Dan Lamothe, Paul Sonne: On Ukraine's Snake Island, a defiant last stand against Russian forces In: The Washington Post. Abgerufen im 25 February 2022
- ↑ a b Namita Singh: 'Russian warship, go f**k yourself': the defiant last words of 13 Ukrainian soldiers In: The Independent, 25 February 2022
- ↑ Vorlage:Cite magazine
- ↑ Geoff Ziezulewicz: Ukrainians trapped on Snake Island to the Russians demanding their surrender: 'go f*ck yourself.' In: Navy Times, 25 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ ? (Originaltitel: uk:Острів Зміїний захопили російські окупанти – ДПСУ, deutsch: Snake Island was captured by the Russian occupiers – SBGS) In: Gazeta.ua, 24 February 2022
- ↑ Johnny Hallam: Ukraine's State Border Guard says island south of country's coast falls into Russian hands. In: CNN. 24. Februar 2022, abgerufen am 24. Februar 2022.
- ↑ Elias Visontay: Ukraine soldiers told Russian officer 'go fuck yourself' before they died on island In: The Guardian, 25 February 2022. Abgerufen im 28 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ Ukraine's boats attack ships evacuating Ukrainian troops who surrendered on Snake Island ( des vom 28. Februar 2022 im Internet Archive), 27 February 2022. Abgerufen im 4 March 2022
- ↑ Adrienne Vogt: Pentagon denies Russia's claim that it's "highly likely" US used surveillance drones to help Ukrainian navy In: CNN, 26 February 2022. Abgerufen im 27 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ Ivan Boyko: ? (Originaltitel: ru:Россия захватила гражданское спасательное судно у острова Змеиный, deutsch: Russia seizes civilian rescue ship off Zmeiny Island). Abgerufen am 5. März 2022 (russisch).
- ↑ Ukraine's Snake Island under attack, border guards took up defense, 24 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ Vorlage:Cite tweet
- ↑ a b Ukrainian border guards could still be alive after Russian attack on Snake Island, authorities say, amid conflicting accounts In: ABC News (Australian TV channel), 28 February 2022. Abgerufen im 3 March 2022
- ↑ Jeff Dean: Russian warship tells Ukrainian soldiers to surrender. They profanely refuse In: NPR, 25 February 2022. Abgerufen im 26 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ Sebastian Shukla: Defenders of Ukrainian island may still be alive and now POWs, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine says In: CNN, 26 February 2022 (englisch).
- ↑ Dan Lamothe: Ukrainian border guards may have survived reported last stand on Snake Island In: The Washington Post. Abgerufen im 27 February 2022
- ↑ Snake Island: Ukraine says troops who swore at Russian warship are alive. BBC News, 28. Februar 2022, abgerufen am 7. März 2022.
- ↑ Aaron Reich: Ukrainian Navy confirms Snake Island soldiers are alive, POWs In: The Jerusalem Post, 28 February 2022
- ↑ Bill Chappell: Snake Island sailors are freed as Ukraine and Russia conduct a prisoner exchange. In: NPR. 24. März 2022, abgerufen am 25. März 2022.
- ↑ Pjotr Sauer: Ukraine gives medal to soldier who told Russian officer to 'go fuck yourself' In: The Guardian, 30 March 2022
- ↑ Geoff Ziezulewicz: Ukrainians trapped on Snake Island to the Russians demanding their surrender: 'go f*ck yourself.' In: Navy Times, 25 February 2022. Abgerufen am 5. März 2022 (amerikanisches Englisch).
- ↑ Peter Weber: How 'Russian warship, go f—k yourself' became Ukraine's 'Remember the Alamo!' In: The Week. Abgerufen im 25 February 2022
- ↑ Fact check: Ukrainian stamp honoring Snake Island soldiers' response to Russian warship is real. In: USA Today. Abgerufen am 4. April 2022.
- ↑ David Axe: One Of Russia's Biggest Cruisers Knocked Out Near Odessa In: Forbes, April 13, 2022. Abgerufen im 14 April 2022
- ↑ Brad Lendon: Russian navy evacuates badly damaged flagship in Black Sea. Ukraine claims it was hit by a missile, CNN, April 14, 2022. Abgerufen im 14 April 2022
- ↑ Russian warship Moskva has sunk - defence ministry, BBC News, 14 April 2022