Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy celebrated his country’s “courage” with a visit to Snake Island in the Black Sea, where his army won a prestigious victory at the start of the war against Russia, which began its 500th day on Saturday.
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This symbolic milestone is passed as Kiev, which is engaged in a counter-offensive against Moscow, received a pledge from Washington on Friday to supply cluster bombs to the country just days before the NATO summit in Vilnius.
Marking the 500th day of a conflict that has killed more than 9,000 civilians, according to the UN, Ukraine’s president visited Snake Island, which Moscow captured shortly after the invasion began on February 24, 2022, before it was forced to surrender to Kiev forces.
“Today we are on Snake Island, which will never be conquered by the occupier, just like the rest of Ukraine, because we are the land of courage,” Zelenskyy said in a statement. Undated video posted to social media on Saturday.
The Ukrainian contingent stationed on this small rock at the start of the invasion had refused to surrender and ordered the Russian warship Moskva to “piss off” during a radio call that had become cult and as symbol of the Kiev resistance was launched.
AFP
These Ukrainian soldiers were certainly captured before being exchanged with Russian prisoners. But the Moskva sank in the Black Sea after being hit by Ukrainian missiles, according to Kiev. Moscow had reported an explosion on board, but had to leave the island in June 2022.
“Here, from this place of victory, I want to thank each of our soldiers for these 500 days,” said Mr. Zelenskyy in this video, in which we see him laying flowers at a memorial on this island, which is only a few tens of kilometers away away lies ribs.
“Difficult Decision”
On Friday, Ukraine’s president won a diplomatic victory after Washington decided to supply him with cluster munitions, which he described as an “essential aid program.”
The United States has thus taken another step in its support for Ukraine by agreeing to provide its ally with these weapons, which kill indiscriminately by scattering small explosive charges before or after impact.
“It was a very difficult decision for me,” US President Joe Biden told CNN.
Getty Images via AFP
But Washington eventually concluded that this shipment was “the right thing” given developments on the ground and after Kiev received a pledge to “minimize risks to civilians.”
On the other hand, Washington dampened the hopes of Mr Zelenskyy, who hoped for Western support for his country’s NATO entry at the next summit on July 11-12 in Vilnius.
Kyiv has “many steps to go before it can become a member,” warned White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
9,000 civilians killed
On the contrary, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who received Mr Zelenskyy in Istanbul on Friday, believed that Ukraine “deserved” to join the Atlantic Alliance and urged the two warring countries to “return to peace talks”.
Mr. Zelenskyi had a long meeting with the Turkish President, who has close ties with both Kiev and Moscow. An agreement was signed in July 2022 that allows Ukraine to export grain across the Black Sea despite the war.
AFP
That deal expires on July 17 and Russia has said it sees no reason to extend it. “We hope that the agreement will be extended,” said Erdogan, who wants to discuss the issue with Mr Putin, whom he is due to receive in August.
The Ukrainian President prayed for the victims of the war together with the Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew on Saturday morning.
Locally, the conflict continues to claim casualties, the UN regretted on Friday, reporting that more than 9,000 civilians have been killed since the war began, including 500 children.
Far from the front line, in the city of Lemberg (west), ten people were killed in a bomb attack early Thursday. According to a report released Friday morning, 42 people, including three children, were injured in the same attack.