How the US Can Break Vlad’s Grip on Black Sea; Russia’s Snake Island Retreat: Ukraine repels the invaders from a key Black Sea stronghold; How Snake Island Became So Strategic in the Ukraine War; US unveils $820M military package to Ukraine, with air defense systems, LIVE UPDATES and MORE

By admin On Jul 2, 2022

How the US can break Vlad’s grip on Black Sea:

The Kremlin might be spinning Russia’s withdrawal from Snake Island — a tiny piece of land off the Bessarabian coast that rose to international prominence through the defiance of its Ukrainian garrison in the early hours of the war — as an act of “good will.” In reality, the forced retreat after a successful Ukrainian bombing campaign is a major defeat for Vladimir Putin.

With Western help, it could be a turning point in the war’s perhaps most significant theater: the Black Sea.

The Black Sea matters not just to Ukraine and its neighbors. The blockade of Odessa, Ukraine’s premier port, and the mining of the surrounding waters has stopped Ukrainian grain exports from reaching their destinations — many of them in the developing world. Ukraine is the world’s fourth largest exporter of wheat, with some 30 million tons sitting in storage — or getting stolen by Russian occupiers.

Starving them out

To the people in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, this is quite literally a matter of life or death. Almost two-thirds of the population of Sierra Leone are experiencing food insecurity, and over 30% of its children are malnourished. South Sudan, meanwhile, is already headed into a food crisis affecting 70% of its population, possibly more dramatic than the famine of 2017. —>READ MORE HERE

Russia’s Snake Island Retreat:

Ukraine repels the invaders from a key Black Sea stronghold.

Russian soldiers withdrew Thursday from Snake Island, a small but significant outpost in the Black Sea. The Ukrainian victory doesn’t signal a major change in the course of the war, but it does weaken the Kremlin’s Black Sea blockade.

Snake Island is located just off the coast near Ukraine’s border with Romania and close to the mouth of the Danube River. Seizing it was a top priority when Russia launched its invasion. It succeeded—but only after the soldiers defending it famously told the Russian warship to you-know-what.

Ukraine soon sank that warship, the Moskva, but Snake Island could perform many of the same functions as the flagship cruiser. Russia began installing surface-to-air missile systems and antiship missiles, as well as equipment for electronic warfare and to limit Kyiv’s situational awareness in the Black Sea.

The buildup shielded Russia’s remaining warships, which it has used to conduct missile strikes on the Ukrainian interior. It also freed more Russian boats to remain outside the reach of Ukrainian artillery. If Russia wants to maintain the same level of Black Sea operations without Snake Island, it may have to put some of its ships within the reach of Ukraine’s Harpoon and Neptune antiship missiles. —>READ MORE HERE

Follow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:

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+++++How Snake Island Became So Strategic in the Ukraine War+++++

+++++US unveils $820 million military package to Ukraine, with air defense systems+++++

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