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The commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, Viktor Sokolov (61), is said to have appeared on Russian television for the second time in the past two days. This is despite Ukrainian forces claiming the commander was killed in the devastating rocket attack on the Black Sea Fleet headquarters.
On Wednesday, the Russian television channel Zvezda published an interview with Sokolov. In the video, Sokolov talks about the tasks that the Black Sea Fleet “successfully mastered”. In addition, the station reports, as part of the event, the commander presented prizes to the football team of the Black Sea Fleet.
But the new recordings also leave questions unanswered. The broadcaster did not provide any information about the time or location of the recorded images. In the interview Sokolow makes no statements about events that would make a temporal orientation possible. He also does not comment on the speculation surrounding his alleged death.
Building now bombed
As Ukrainian Pravda writes, citing the secret service, it has now been verified that the recordings were made in the house of the fleet officers in Sevastopol in Russian-occupied Crimea. However, according to Ukrainian sources, the house was bombed over a week ago.
Also notable: the excellent FC Chornomorets did not mention on its website, its Telegram channel or the Russian social media platform VK that its players were being honored by such a high-ranking official.
The Kremlin is keeping a low profile
Ukrainian special forces said 34 Russian officers – including Viktor Sokolov – had been eliminated after the rocket attack on the headquarters in Sevastopol. 105 others were injured.
A day later, Russian media published a video showing a ‘live’ Sokolov reportedly attending a Defense Ministry meeting. Here too it is not known when the recording was made. Following the material that emerged, Kiev announced that it would “review” the information about Sokolov’s death.
The Kremlin and the Russian Ministry of Defense have shown remarkable restraint in recent days. Russian authorities have not explicitly confirmed that Sokolov is alive. (An)
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
