The Russian Ministry of Defense reposted the message of the channel “War against fakes” in its Telegram channel. In it, the information that Russian troops left Zmeiny Island, "unable to withstand the attacks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine", an unknown author tried to refute the statements that "it is difficult to keep it <the island – The Insider> in conditions of open confrontation" and "the decision was made to remove the garrison from the island to avoid losses."
Serpentine is a strategically important island in the Black Sea, battles for it have been going on throughout the war. In recent months, it was occupied by the Russian army, but on the night of June 30, Ukraine launched strikes on the island, as a result of which Russia evacuated the remnants of the garrison and left the island. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the armed forces “as a step of goodwill” completed “the fulfillment of the assigned tasks on Snake Island” and withdrew the garrison stationed there.
The “War on Fake” message was intended to refute both the fact of the strike and the fact that Russian troops left the island by force, but it can be interpreted as words about the victory of Ukraine. About the strike, the channel wrote that “in fact, the smoke is traces of the destruction of the remains of equipment and ammunition.” Then the channel began to refute the reports of "Ukrainian sources and Western media": Serpentine "really" is of strategic importance, but "he has already fulfilled his role in controlling the airspace." In addition, “considering the constant attacks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” it “required large resources” to keep it, although the Russian garrison “withstood several attacks.”
The channel "War on Fake" appeared after the start of the war. Now he has more than 700 thousand subscribers. It is not known who is involved in it, but the channel's messages are often reposted by pro-government media and some departments.
Military-political expert Yuri Fedorov told The Insider that Russia's assertion is "obvious lies and hypocrisy" as there was no act of "good will" involved. He explained that the Russian Armed Forces left Zmeiny due to the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine, including American HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems.