I don’t want to make light of it, but it appears the Ukrainians really sank a Russian battleship.
Here’s what we know. Russia’s premier Black Sea warship, the Moskva, has sunk. Ukraine says they hit it with anti-ship missiles. Russia will only say that there was a fire. Either way, it’s a big loss for Russia.
General Jack Keane tells Fox News: “This is their number one flagship in the Black Sea and they have done a remarkable job.”
For his part, President Zelensky is telling his people to be proud for surviving the Russian invasion. Zelensky addressed his country in a new video last night. He said Russia thought this would be over in five days. It’s now been fifty.
Zelensky called it “an achievement of millions of Ukrainians, of everyone on February 24, made the most important decision of their life… to fight.”
On the sinking of the Moskva, Zelensky referenced it by saying, “those who showed that Russian warships can sail away, even if it’s to the bottom of the sea.”
Remember the Ukrainian soldier that famously raised his middle finger and told the Russian warship, “Go f—- yourself?” Well, that very image has now been made into a commemorative stamp. Ukrainians are lining up to buy it.
From the Washington Post: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took to social media to promote the commemorative stamp and an envelope that bore the same image. He mocked the damaged vessel, telling people using the stamps to remember that the Moskva “always travels only in one direction” — downward.
Hahaha! Brilliant!
But… the war goes on. I want to believe that Ukraine has the upper hand. I also know Russia is regrouping and reloading.
U-S Defense officials say the Russians are getting ready for a major ground offensive in the Donbas region of Ukraine.
Meantime, the head of the United Nations food program in Ukraine predicts the country’s humanitarian crises is likely to worsen. David Beasley says people are starving to death. Russian forces are not allowing aid into Mariupol.
That sunk battleship is a symbol of pride and bravery for the people of Ukraine. Let them enjoy it. I think reality of a prolonged war will set in soon.