On the anniversary of Moscow’s occupation of Crimea, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reaffirmed his government’s will to bring the peninsula back into the Ukrainian state federation. “In 2014, Russian aggression began with the capture of Crimea,” Zelenskyy said today in his nightly video.
“It stands to reason that with the liberation of Crimea we will mark an historic end to all Russia’s attempts to ruin the lives of Ukrainians and all peoples of Europe and Asia that the Kremlin once claimed to have subjugated.”
“International law will prevail”
“Today, February 26, we mark the Day of Resistance Against the Occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol,” Zelenskyy said. He asked Ukraine’s media to emphasize “that Ukraine does not abandon anyone, does not leave anyone to the enemy”. At the same time, Zelenskyy was confident: “International law will prevail here, on the soil of Ukraine: in Donbass, in Azov, in Kherson and in Crimea.”
In the spring of 2014, Russia took control of the Crimean Peninsula, which belongs to Ukraine. The first armed clashes between Ukrainian government supporters and pro-Russian protesters on February 26, 2014 finally led to military intervention by Russia. A controlled referendum on incorporation into the Russian Federation led to Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in March.