Ukraine’s president pledges to ‘return’ Russia-annexed Crimea
According to ALJAZEERA, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pledged to do all he can to recover the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula and urged international allies to support the effort.
Speaking on Monday at the Crimean Platform, a summit in Kyiv designed to keep international attention focused on Russia’s 2014 annexation, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would use “all possible political, legal and first and foremost diplomatic means” to pursue its goal.
Russia’s seizure of Crimea was denounced as illegal by most of the world and has sent Moscow’s relations with the West plummeting to post-Cold War lows in the years since.
“I will personally do everything possible to return Crimea so that it becomes part of Europe together with Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
He told the forum that Kyiv needed “effective support at the international level” over the issue.
Top officials from 46 countries and blocs took part in the summit, including from the United States, the European Union and Turkey.
All 30 member states of the NATO transatlantic security alliance were represented.
Top Western officials relayed messages of support for Ukraine.
“Ukraine will never be alone in that Crimea is Ukraine,” EU Council President Charles Michel said.
“Unfortunately, Russia continues to act in ways that multiply the negative impact of the annexation,” he added.
“The continued militarisation of the peninsula heavily affects the security situation in the Black Sea region.
Zelenskyy charged that Russia has turned Crimea into a “military base” and “a foothold for Russia to boost its influence on the Black Sea region”.
He said Moscow has tripled its military presence in Crimea.
Participants of the summit signed a joint declaration, which, Zelenskyy said in his closing remarks, “clearly stipulates the non-recognition of Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and contains commitments to consider imposing additional political and diplomatic sanctions on Russia in the case of further aggression”.
“Occupation of Crimea casts doubts on the effectiveness of the entire international security system,” he said.
“Without restoring the trust in it, not a single state can be sure that it wouldn’t become the next victim of occupation.”
