A Ukrainian soldier who defied a Russian warship by telling its commander to “go f*** yourself” has been awarded a bravery medal after being freed from captivity.
Roman Hrybov was stationed on Zmiinyi (Snake) Island in the Black Sea when Russian forces launched their invasion on 24 February.
A day later, 13 guards stationed on the remote island were informed by a Russian warship via loudspeaker that they should surrender or “be hit with a bomb strike”.
“I am Russian warship, repeat I am Russian warship,” the advancing vessel announced. “Proposing to put down the arms immediately to avoid bloodshed and unjustified deaths.”
Mr Hrybov and his colleagues responded: “Russian warship, go f*** yourself”, according to audio recording obtained by Ukrainian news outlet Ukrayinska Pravda.
Initial fears that all the guards on the island had been fatally wounded by Russian forces proved to be ill-founded but the group was taken hostage, only to be released last week under a prisoner exchange programme.
Early attempts to find out what had happened to them were interrupted after Russian troops destroyed infrastructure on the island, the Ukrainian navy said.
On Tuesday, Ukraine’s defence ministry confirmed Mr Hrybov had returned to Ukraine and had been awarded a bravery medal for his efforts, which had become a national rallying cry in the early stages of Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
“Roman Hrybov, the author of the famous ‘Russian Warship, Go F*** Yourself’ phrase, returned from Russian captivity to his native Cherkasy region. Glory to the Hero! #GlorytoUkraine,” the ministry tweeted.
It is believed he was freed as part of a deal that saw Ukraine and Russia exchange 50 military and civilian prisoners.
Last month Russian state media showed the arrival of the Snake Island guards in Sevastopol, Crimea, where they were reportedly being held.
Snake Island is a largely uninhabited but strategically important strip of land in the Black Sea, about 186 miles west of Crimea.
