In Sevastopol, Russia Secretly Honors The Black Sea Crew It Won't Admit It Lost
On Saturday, June 17, 2023, exactly one year after the disappearance of the rescue tug SB-739 "Spasatel Vasily Bekh", a monument to the deceased crew was unveiled on the territory of the military unit.
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Not eligible for compensation
According to Shkrebets, it took the surviving members of the tugboat’s crew and the relatives of the deceased crew members nine months of "bureaucratic struggle" to get the authorities to acknowledge that the vessel participated in what Russia calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine.
Seven civilians and four military personnel were killed.
The command of the Russian Black Sea Fleet claimed that the tugboat's crew voluntarily entered the "special operation" zone without orders from the leadership of the Black Sea Fleet, according to Shkrebets, referring to the documents he saw.
Shkrebets claims that there were 19 civilian crew members and 14 military personnel on the tugboat. As a result of the Ukrainian strike, seven civilians and four military personnel were killed.
One of the surviving crew members informed Agenstvo that they are not eligible to receive compensation because Russian President Vladimir Putin has not issued a decree concerning social guarantees for civilian personnel of the Ministry of Defense.
Nevertheless, he noted, many ships manned by civilian crews from the emergency rescue unit and the support fleet of the Black Sea Fleet are participating in the “special military operation."
