Volodymyr Zelensky hails efforts of Snake Island defenders

President Zelensky with his ministers and the released defenders of the steel plant. Pic/AP

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky marked the 500th day of the war Saturday by hailing the country's soldiers in a video from a Black Sea island that became the symbol of Ukraine's resilience in the face of the Russian invasion.

Speaking from Snake Island, Zelensky honored the Ukrainian soldiers who fought for the island and all other defenders of the country, saying that reclaiming control of the island "is a great proof that Ukraine will regain every bit of its territory."

"I want to thank - from here, from this place of victory - each of our soldiers for these 500 days," Zelensky said. "Thank you to everyone who fights for Ukraine!" It was unclear when the video was filmed. Zelensky was returning from Turkey on Saturday. He announced that five commanders of the defense of the Azovstal steel plant, a grueling months-long siege early in the war, were returning on the plane with him.

The sprawling steelworks was the last bastion of resistance as Russian forces took control of the port city of Mariupol. Its defenders became renowned among Ukrainians for holding out in wretched conditions in the plant's tunnels and corridors.

Azovstal's more than 2,000 defenders left the steelworks in mid-May 2022 and were taken into Russian captivity. The five leaders, some of whom were part of the Azov national guard regiment that Russia denounces as neo-Nazi, were freed in a September prisoner swap and taken to Turkey.

Under the exchange, the leaders were to remain in Turkey until the end of the war under the Turkish president's protection. There was no immediate official explanation from Ankara or Kyiv about why they were allowed to return to Ukraine.

2K
No. of Ukrainian defenders taken into custody

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