Snake island has about 100 inhabitants, which is generally considered to be the norm in the only settlement in Bile. It is not of any significant residential importance, and the inhabitants are not considered to live there full-time. It is a strategic standpoint for a military base, so the residents are only servicemen, technical personnel, and the families of those who are on or off duty at times. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the treaty between Romania and Ukraine saw the Ukrainian authorities withdraw their army radio division and demolish their radar, transferring the infrastructure back to civilians.
This had soured relationships, as Romania saw the island as "nothing more than a rock in the sea". The island also contains a large lighthouse and supplies for the population to survive on but lacks a source of fresh water.
Snake Island, which is also known as Zmiinyi Island or Serpent Island, is an island that currently belongs to Ukraine and is located near the Danube Delta near the Black Sea. It is not particularly important for its resources or land mass but is critical in delimiting the Ukrainian territorial waters. Famously, the island has been recorded since antiquity, as the ancient Greeks erected a temple to Achillies on the island.
The island has long been contested with the bordering country of Romania, over the interpretation of a treaty occurring after the collapse of the soviet union, which had largely expanded Ukraine's borders. This matter was of such great importance that the waters surrounding the island were taken to a dispute by the International Court of Justice. The final verdict was that Romania held control of almost 80% of the maritime territory.
In a great stroke of irony, what caused a more than a two-decade-long dispute between the two countries due to the Russian Soviet Union almost illegally annexed on Feb 24th, 2022 by the Russian invasion of Ukraine? The Island was temporarily captured. On June 30th, 2022, Russian forces withdrew from the island due to constant bombardment by the Ukrainian army and militias. The media has divulged two different stories. Pro-Ukrainian sources announced the complete success of re-capturing the area, while pro-Russian news sources claimed it had retreated from the area as a gesture of goodwill.
Snake Island held an extremely important position during the Second World War. During this time, it was part of the Romanian state and its authority. The Romanian navy that was tasked with defending the island had equipped it with large coastal and anti-aircraft guns, which successfully defended the island from enemy ships and armor during multiple battles against the soviet union. Eventually, after the Paris Peace treaty, Snake Island was ceded to the Soviet Union among other territorial waters and provinces. The ownership of the island has been a topic of contention since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.