- Russia’s Ministry of Defence published a video showing a Russian commander attending a meeting by video link.
- It was unusual given that Ukraine confidently claimed to have killed him on Friday in an air strike.
- While it isn’t absolute proof, the video suggests that Viktor Sokolov is still alive.
The Russian Ministry of Defense published a video undermining Ukraine’s claim to have killed one of its top commanders, appearing to show him in a meeting.
Viktor Sokolov, the admiral of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, appeared on a large screen at a meeting of the board of the Russian Ministry of Defense on Tuesday.
The image was striking because Ukraine claimed to have killed Sokolov in a major strike on the Black Sea Fleet headquarters near Sevastopol, a port in occupied Crimea.
Ukraine said he was one of 34 officers killed. But a man resembling Sokolov, and wearing a name badge and insignia matching his rank, was seen on-screen at the meeting Tuesday.
The attack on Friday was one of a series Ukraine has launched on Russian military targets in Crimea.
Had he been killed, Sokolov would have been one of the most senior casualties in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
This is a developing story, check back for further updates.
