Russia has relinquished its position on Snake Island.
Russia says it has withdrawn its garrison as a
"gesture of goodwill" to prove it was not obstructing grain exports.
Ukraine dismissed that assertion and has claimed it as a win.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter,
“They always downplay their defeats this way”
Valeriy Zaluzhny, the Ukraine military’s commander-in-chief,
said on Telegram, “I thank the defenders of Odessa region
who took maximum measures to liberate a strategically important part of our territory,”
As per reports, while the island has been attacked by Ukrainian aerial assets, the knockout blows
have been landed by intense artillery and MLRS strikes that made Russia vacate it.
Latest update state that two sorties of Russian Su-30 fighter jets dropping phosphorus bombs
were flown over the island from the Russian-controlled Crimean Peninsula.
This indicates that withdrawal was not voluntary
and Russia is making attempts to destroy leftover assets before they fall into the enemy's hands.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why the loss of Snake Island is a major setback
for Russia? Let's get started.
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 was subsequently captured.
The incident was hugely publicized when an audio clip of the Russian cruiser Moskva
hailing the island's garrison over the radio demanding their surrender and being told
"Russian warship, go fuck yourself"
Viewers may note that earlier the island was chosen by President Zelenskyy in August 2021
for a press event amid Russian troops’ build-up on the Black Sea border.
Zelenskyy had said at the time, “This island, like the rest of our territory, is Ukrainian land,
and we will defend it with all our might,”
The island is strategically located.
It is 35 km or about 22 miles south of the Ukrainian coast in the Black Sea
and about 300 km or 186 miles west of Crimea, the Ukrainian territory that Russia annexed in 2014.
Snake Island's location allowed Russia to claim territorial waters
stretching 12 nautical miles or about 22 km out to sea.
Russia had positioned both Tor and Pantsir short-range air defense systems in Snake Island,
known by the NATO reporting names SA-15 Gauntlet and SA-22 Greyhound, respectively.
The Tor is is a self-propelled all-weather low to medium altitude, short-range
surface-to-air missile system designed for destroying airplanes, helicopters,
cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and short-range ballistic threats (anti-munitions).
Radar of the Tor detects aircraft at a range of 27 km or 17 miles,
helicopters at a range of 12 km or 7.5 miles and UAVs at a range of 15 km or 9.5 miles.
The maximum range of fire is 12 km or 7.5 miles and the maximum altitude is
6 km or 3.7 miles, depending on the target speed.
The Pantsir S1 missile system is a self-propelled
surface-to-air missile system.
It is designed to provide point air defense of
military/industrial/administrative installations against aircraft, helicopters, precision
munitions, cruise missiles, and UAVs. The detection range is 22 mi
or 36 km and the tracking range is 17 mi or 28 km for a target with 2 m2 or 22 sq ft RCS.
Pantsir-S1 is unique as it is the first version of the Pantsir family of air
defense systems that combines short to medium-range surface-to-air missiles
and anti-aircraft artillery in a single platform. The missiles have a range of 20 km or 12 miles,
a max speed of Mach 3.8, and carry a 20 kg or 44 lbs High Explosive fragmentation warhead.
Anti-aircraft artillery is the two dual 2A38M 30 mm autocannon guns that
are fitted with 700 rounds. The maximum rate of fire is
2,500 rounds per minute per gun. The cannon has a range of 2.5 mi or 4 km
Now Russian assets including warships in the Black Sea have become more vulnerable to attacks.
Just like Ukraine was able to hit Snake Island,
Russia could have used the Snake Island for attacks.
Russia has several systems that have the required range
For example, Smerch system could be used as it has a range of about 70 km or 44 miles
It is designed to counter tactical missile systems,
army aviation at staging airstrips, as well as rocket,
artillery and mortar battalions and batteries, command post, and manpower concentration areas.
But this option is now removed.
Snake Island covers crucial shipping channels to the port cities of Odessa, Mykolaiv, and Kherson.
With Snake Island captured, Russia was able to cut off Ukraine from international markets,
depriving its economy of trade revenues.
Ukraine’s economy is expected to shrink by an estimated 45.1 percent this year,
although the magnitude of the contraction will depend on the duration and intensity of the war.
Viewers may note that Ukraine is one of the main world exporters of grains
as well as vegetable oils. The main agricultural export products are Corn and Wheat. In 2021
Ukraine was the second-largest supplier of grains for the European Union (EU)
and a large food supplier for low and middle-income countries in Asia and Africa.
The release of Snake Island from Russian clutches will surely help with the situation.