There are three reasons why the Russian army retreated from Snake Island, as follows:
1. Ukraine and international organizations have blamed the inability to export Ukrainian food, which is likely to lead to a food crisis. On Russia. Russia's withdrawal from Snake Island will give it no excuse to blame itself for the food problem.
2. Russia’s move can also show the world its concern and goodwill for food issues.
3. The terrain of Snake Island is flat and easy to attack and difficult to defend. It is not difficult to understand that Russia changed its tactics after realizing that the difficulties of guarding Snake Island outweighed the benefits of controlling the northwest part of the Black Sea.
Snake Island’s location advantage
Snake Island is about 140 kilometers away from the Ukrainian port city of Odessa. There is a post office, museum and bank on the island. However, the population is not large and is mainly composed of border guards.
Snake Island is located about 32 kilometers south of the Ukrainian coast and very close to Romania, a member of NATO. Russian media have reported that one of the main ways for the West to transport weapons to Ukraine is through land and sea transportation through Romania. For the Russian army, controlling Snake Island can cut off this channel.