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The Ukrainian soldier, who told a Russian invading warship to go "F*** yourself", was awarded a civic medal for refusing to surrender.

The show of valour and defiance in the face of foreign aggression on the first day of war on Feb. 24, has since been immortalised with the phrase going down in history as one of the most famous put-downs.

Turned into a slogan

Roman Gribov, the soldier who uttered the words, was trapped on the tiny Black Sea island and massively outgunned.

His response to the Russian warship was emphatic in the early days of war, which led to an upsurge of patriotism.

The slogan subsequently appeared on billboards across the country and even inspired a new Ukrainian stamp showing a lone soldier giving a dark, hulking warship a middle-fingered salute.

Myth began as it was reported soldiers killed

Gribov, a border guard, was one of the 13 soldiers involved in the Snake Island incident.

The Ukrainian soldiers were initially reported to have been killed as were thought to have fought to their deaths defending the island by refusing to surrender to the Russians.

Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukraine president, even said he would posthumously award the troops the nation's top military award.

Soldiers lived

It later transpired that the soldiers on the island did surrender to the Russian warship and lived, as they were taken as prisoners of war.

Gribov was then returned to Ukraine a few weeks later in a prisoner swap with Russia.

He has since reportedly applied to trademark his famous phrase.

Gribov accepted the award with a smile and gave a brief interview.

"I want to say a big thank you to the Ukrainian people for such support," he said.

"We strongly feel this support, it inspires us."

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