It was a strategic position in the Black Sea conquered by Moscow.

A small island that became emblematic when a member of the small Ukrainian garrison defending it, before surrendering, ordered to go “fuck off” to the Russian ship demanding its surrender.

This Serpents' Island has been under Ukrainian bombardment in recent weeks and the Russian army announced on Thursday that it had withdrawn.

"On June 30, as a sign of goodwill, the Russian armed forces accomplished the objectives set on Serpents' Island and withdrew their garrison there," said Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. , assuring that this gesture should facilitate grain exports from Ukraine.

“Russia does not oppose UN efforts to create a humanitarian corridor to export grain production from Ukraine,” he continued.

"This decision will no longer allow Kyiv to speculate on an impending food crisis by saying that it is impossible to export grain because of Russia's total control over the northwest Black Sea," he said. added Igor Konashenkov.

“Our armed forces have done a great job”

The Ukrainian army congratulated itself on Thursday for having forced the Russians, "unable to resist the fire of our artillery", to withdraw from the island.

"I thank the defenders of the Odessa region who have done their utmost to liberate a strategically important territory", welcomed on Telegram the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, Valeriï Zaloujniï.

"Unable to resist the fire of our artillery, our missiles and our air strikes, the occupiers left Serpents' Island", he rejoiced, accompanying his message with a video showing strikes on the island.

“Our armed forces have done a great job,” Andriï Yermak, the head of the administration of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Twitter.

Our file on the war in Ukraine

Serpents' Island, located in the northwest of the Black Sea, near the Ukrainian and Romanian coasts, was conquered by Moscow at the start of the offensive in Ukraine launched on February 24.

The island was then regularly targeted by Ukrainian drone and missile strikes.

Russia thus assured on June 21 that it had repelled a “crazy” attempt by the forces of kyiv to retake Serpents' Island.

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