Naval officers on the Russian warship Moskovar held Ukrainian border guards on Snake Island, a small island in the Black Sea. The encounter was made even sweeter for the Ukrainians when the Moskovar ended up at the bottom of the Black Sea two months later. Despite the middling role of Russia's naval force in this war, Moscow is stepping up efforts to protect its fleet. In June, we saw the Admiral Eson, a Russian warship in Sevastopol, which appeared to have acquired a rather striking new paint job. So they're resorting to optical illusions? Effectively, yes.