Ukraine wins back control over Snake Island
NPRUkraine wins back control over Snake Island Enlarge this image toggle caption Sean Gallup/Getty Images Sean Gallup/Getty Images KYIV, Ukraine — Russia says it has evacuated its soldiers stationed on Snake Island, the Ukrainian outpost in the Black Sea that had been invaded by Russia in late February. Snake Island, also known as Zmiinyi Island, is a strategic outpost off the southern coast of Ukraine that has taken on heroic proportions in Ukraine's fight against Russia after Ukrainian soldiers there refused to surrender the island in a February battle. "Unable to withstand the fire of our artillery, missile and air strikes, the occupiers left Snake Island," Valery Zaluzhny, the head of Ukraine's armed forces, said in a video speech on Facebook. Ukrainian control over Snake Island gives Ukraine's armed forces a chance to disrupt Russian shipping lanes in the Black Sea and weaken Russia's hold on southern Ukrainian land.