User:MyMoloboaccount/Crimea
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Crimean crisis was an international crisis in 2014 that instigated the ongoing dispute involving Russia and Ukraine over the control of the Crimean Peninsula, culminating in its annexation by the Russian Federation and incorporation as two separate federal subjects. The crisis was part of the wider 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine which also includes the Donbass region of Ukraine. The current international status of Crimea and Sevastopol as federal subjects of the Russian Federation is only explicitly recognized by five UN member states, other than Russia. All other countries recognize Crimea as part of Ukraine.
2014 Crimean crisis | |||
---|---|---|---|
Part of the Ukrainian crisis | |||
Date | February 23, 2014 – March 19, 2014[1](24 days) | ||
Location | Crimean Peninsula | ||
Caused by |
| ||
Resulted in |
| ||
Parties | |||
| |||
Lead figures | |||
Number | |||
| |||
Casualties and losses | |||
| |||
3 protesters killed (2 pro-Russian and 1 pro-Ukrainian)[39][40][41][42] |
The crisis unfolded in the aftermath of the Ukrainian Revolution. On 21 February 2014, pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych fled the Ukrainian capital Kiev. The Ukrainian parliament officially removed him from power the next day, and appointed an interim President, Oleksandr Turchynov, who formed an interim government. The new Ukrainian government was recognized by the United States and European Union but was rejected by Russia, who condemned the Turchynov government as illegitimate and the result of a coup d'etat. Russian President, Vladimir Putin, convened an all-night meeting with security services chiefs to discuss how to extricate deposed President, Viktor Yanukovych, and where, at the end of that meeting, Putin had made the remark, "We must start working on returning Crimea to Russia."[43] On 23 February pro-Russian protests were held in the Crimean city of Sevastopol. Beginning on February 26, pro-Russian forces began to swiftly occupy strategic positions and infrastructure across the Crimean peninsula. Media sources reported the presence of military personnel equipped with Russian weapons and in Russian-made uniform without insignia.[44][45][46] With unmarked, pro-Russian forces rapidly occupying strategic sites across the Crimean peninsula a rump session of the Crimean Parliament voted to dismiss the Crimean government, replace its Prime Minister, and call a referendum on Crimea's autonomy.[47][48][49]
The ensuing 16 March 2014 referendum on whether to join Russia[50] had an official turnout of 83% and officially resulted in a 96.77% (Crimea) and 95.6% (Sevastopol) affirmative vote,[51] but the referendum was condemned by the EU, the US, Ukraine and the representatives of the Crimean Tatars for violating Ukraine's constitution and international law.[51][52][53] The following day, on March 17, the Crimean Parliament declared independence from Ukraine and asked to join the Russian Federation.[54] On March 18, Russia and the separatist government of Crimea signed a treaty of accession of the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol into the Russian Federation.[55][56] On March 27, the UN General Assembly passed a non-binding Resolution 68/262 that declared the Crimean referendum invalid and the incorporation of Crimea into Russia illegal.[57][58] On April 15, the Ukrainian parliament declared Crimea a territory temporarily occupied by Russia.[59]
On 17 April 2014 Russian president Vladimir Putin confirmed Russian involvement in Crimea, remarking that "of course, Russian servicemen backed the Crimean self-defense forces".[50] Later in a 2015 state-produced documentary, Putin admitted that following facilitating the flight of Viktor Yanukovych from the country via Crimea, in the early hours of February 23 he began organizing discussions "to start work to bring Crimea back into Russia."[60][61] In an interview on 22 January 2015 Igor Girkin, one of the major "Russian self-defence" commanders in Crimea at that time, stated that the majority of the law enforcement, administration and army were hesitant to support the pro-Russian "self-defence" (one notable exception being Berkut). He also confirmed how his Russian forces had to "forcibly drive the deputies to vote [to secede from Ukraine]", and that only the presence of the regular Russian army in Crimea "made the whole thing work".[62]