Ukrainian stamp becomes a collector's item

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Ukrainian stamp becomes a collector's item

A stamp depicting a Ukrainian soldier making an obscene hand gesture at the Russian Black Sea flagship Moskva has become a collector's item for Ukrainians who see it as a sign of victory. At the central post office in the capital Kyiv, hundreds of Ukrainians of every age could be seen lining up for hours Friday to get their hands on one of the 1 million copies printed so far.

That was the biggest ship they had. They gambled a lot on it and destroyed it! Yury Kolesan, 22, who waited 2 hours to get a set of 30 stamps, said he wanted a set of 30 stamps.

It is a new phase of the war, one of victory! The warship sank on Thursday after an explosion and fire that Ukraine claimed was caused by a missile strike, while Russia said the damage was caused by an explosion of munitions on board. The U.S. said on Friday it was believed to have been sunk by the Ukrainian military.

In the early stages of Russia s invasion of Ukraine, the missile cruiser gained notoriety when a unit of Ukrainian border guards called on a unit of Ukrainian border guards to surrender, only for them to defiantly refuse.

The incident became a symbol of Ukraine's resistance to Russia's assault.

Out of more than 500 submissions, Lviv designer Boris Groh s winning entry shows a Ukrainian soldier from behind swearing at the warship.

It has been a hit, selling out in many post offices and appearing online for resale.

We wanted to print more but the bombing last night in Kyiv affected the work of the factory and we didn't print the necessary quantity, said Ukrainian postal service official Igor Smelyansky.