Admiral Viktor Sokolov, the commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, was featured on Russian state television on Tuesday as he participated remotely in a defense leaders’ meeting, just one day after Ukrainian special forces reported his demise.

In video footage and photographs released by the defense ministry, Sokolov was seen alongside other fleet commanders in a video conference, seemingly joining an in-person meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and other top military officials.

However, he did not speak during the session. The precise date of the video’s recording remained undisclosed, US News reported.

Ukraine’s special forces had announced on Monday that Sokolov, along with 33 other officers, had perished in a missile strike the previous week on the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol, Crimea—territory annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014.

In response to the Russian video, Ukraine’s special forces conveyed on Telegram: “Given the urgent release of a Russian response featuring Sokolov purportedly alive, our units are in the process of verifying this information.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refrained from commenting on the Ukrainian assertion, directing inquiries to the defense ministry.

Written by staff