According to the " Global Times " report on July 1, on June 30, local time, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the withdrawal of troops from Snake Island , saying that in order to express goodwill to Ukraine , the Russian Federation Armed Forces had completed mission on Snake Island and evacuate the troops stationed on the island. Russia's decision caught the outside world by surprise, and various opinions abounded.
Due to its very sensitive geographical location, Snake Island immediately became the target of competition between the Russian and Ukrainian armies after the conflict broke out. After many rounds of repeated battles, the Russian army still controls the island. In contrast, the Ukrainian army is now unable to regain control of the island after losing a large amount of military equipment and personnel. But why did the Russian army suddenly announce its withdrawal? Is it really a release of goodwill?
Snake Island covers an area of only 0.17 square kilometers and is only 35 kilometers away from the nearest coastline of Ukraine. The terrain on the island is flat and unassailable, making it an easy-to-attack but difficult-to-defend position. This is the main reason why Ukraine has repeatedly launched counterattacks in an attempt to regain control of the island. Russia's announcement to relinquish military control of the island is not due to its inability to defend the island, but a tactical adjustment after weighing the pros and cons.
At the beginning of the war, Russia seized Snake Island to cooperate with the naval amphibious landing to seize Odessa . However, the purpose of this campaign did not succeed, and the strategic value of Snake Island was greatly reduced. Due to limited strength, Russia's existing military forces are concentrated in the Donbas region to achieve the second phase of military objectives, and the gain outweighs the loss by dispersing resources for Snake Island, which is easy to attack and difficult to defend.
What's more, with the delivery of long-range multiple rocket launcher systems to Ukraine from the United States, Britain and other countries, it has greatly enhanced the Ukrainian army's long-range firepower strike capabilities. If Russia still clings to Snake Island at this time, although holding Snake Island is not a big problem, it may bring more danger to the defenders on the island. This is another reason why the Russian Ministry of Defense decided to abandon Snake Island.
Regardless of political or military struggle, the essence is to control people instead of controlling them. How can a wise man like Putin not understand this truth. Rather than clinging to Snake Island under the threat of Ukrainian military firepower, the Russian army might as well withdraw its troops and focus on attacking Donbas first. In the future, if the third phase of Russia's military operation really attacks Odessa and Kharkov , it will not be difficult to capture Snake Island.
It can be said with certainty that the main reason for the Russian army's withdrawal from Snake Island is just a tactical adjustment after assessing the situation, but Russia will naturally not say that, just like it will not admit its failure when the US military withdraws from Afghanistan . We have seen that Russia used the withdrawal of its troops from Snake Island to fight against the United States and NATO troops, fighting a beautiful military and political battle.
Russian media quoted official sources as saying that this move is an expression of goodwill to Ukraine and also proves to the international community that Russia will not interfere with the United Nations 's efforts to organize humanitarian corridors to help Ukraine export agricultural products. Russia did not forget to make up for it, saying that the key now is for the Ukrainian government to stop blockading the Black Sea region and remove mines that prevent ships from leaving the port.
Prior to this, the United States and NATO, together with Ukraine, accused Russia of controlling ports in southern Ukraine to prevent Ukrainian food exports, leading to a food crisis in the international community. In fact, this is just the "squid tactic" of the West, because the international food crisis is caused by those Western countries that continue to add fuel to the fire in Ukraine.
Ukraine had previously refused to export food in accordance with relevant United Nations requirements on the grounds of being blocked by Russia. Although Russia has repeatedly promised to open safe corridors to facilitate Ukrainian grain exports, Ukraine has rejected Russia's proposal. He blamed his refusal to export food on "Russia's blockade of Ukraine's seaports."
Prior to this, Kiev authorities had announced restrictions on the export of major grain products such as barley, but they had to lift the ban only after pressure from the EU. However, the Kiev authorities are still unwilling to increase the country's grain exports and blame Russia's "military blockade" as the reason.Now, Russia has announced that it will relinquish control of Snake Island in order to expose lies related to Ukraine.
At this time, Russia announced that it would give up control of Snake Island, and used this tactical adjustment of the Russian military to kick the ball that caused the international food crisis to the feet of the United States, NATO and Ukraine. As a result, Ukraine will probably suffer the most. Without Russia as a shield, if it wants to export food through Odessa to prove its sincerity, it must clear out the mines it has laid. But after clearing the mines, if Russia attacks Odessa in the third phase of its military operation, wouldn't it be helping the Russians to clear mines?
Looking at the essence through the phenomenon, it is clear what the Russian army wants to do. Of course, even if the opponent sees through such a conspiracy, Russia will only be able to "eat tofu" severely.
