The commander of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, Victor Sokolov, who Ukraine had presumed dead in an attack against Sevastopol, assured in new images published this Wednesday that the Navy division he leads “safely and successfully fulfills” its tasks.
“Surface ships, submarine forces, naval aviation and coastal troops are successfully fulfilling their missions. “You know that the exploits of our marines practically never leave the television screen,” Sokolov said in a video published by the Defense Ministry's television channel, “Zvezda.”
Despite this, it has not been possible to prove that the images are current and several analysts affirm that it is still strange that the video does not comment on current events or the attacks last week for which Ukraine left you for dead.
Russian media published an interview with the commander of the Black Sea Fleet Viktor Nikolayevich Sokolov, talking about the Black Sea Fleet operations.
I still doubt he is alive as there is no mention of the attack on Sevastopol to prove the Ukrainian intel is wrong. https://t.co/JuEoYZnESk pic.twitter.com/NTiT37M7tI
— NOELREPORTS 🇪🇺 🇺🇦 (@NOELreports) September 27, 2023
Already on Tuesday Sokolov reappeared in images released by the Ministry of Defense on its Telegram channel. In them he was seen on a large screen supposedly participating in a meeting chaired by the head of this portfolio, Sergei Shoigu, with senior military commanders.
The Ukrainian Special Operations Forces reported on Monday the death of Sokolov and 33 other soldiers as a result of the missile attack that Ukraine launched against the headquarters of the General Staff of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
After reappearing in the Defense video, these same forces insisted that their sources place the fleet commander among the 34 soldiers killed in the bombing.