Ukraine gives medal of courage to soldier who made obscene remarks against Russian troops

KYIV: A Ukrainian soldier, who made obscene remarks against the Russian troops, was awarded the medal of courage for his services. The rare honour was bestowed upon Roman Hrybov, a Ukrainian border guard, who served on the Snake Island during the Russian invasion.

The Russian troops who reached the area had asked the Ukrainian soldiers to lay down their arms and surrender. However, Roman faced them in the eye and said, “Russian warship, go f*** yourself.” The video of the soldiers refusing to surrender before the Russian troops had then gone viral on social media. Roman, who had been imprisoned by the Russian troops, was recently released as part of a prisoner exchange. He received the award for not losing courage even in the face of death.

It was initially thought that the Ukrainian soldiers patrolling on Snake Island had been killed, but were later found to be alive but captured by Russia troops. The Russian invasion in Ukraine began on February 24.