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2014 Crimean crisis
Part of the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution
Crimea (dark green), Rest of Ukraine (light green) and Russia (light red) in Europe
  Crimea
  Rest of Ukraine
  Russia
Date23 February 2014–present
(10 years, 4 months, 2 weeks and 2 days)
Location
Crimea, Ukraine
Caused by
Methods
  • Protests
  • Unmarked Russian military operations in Crimea
  • Concentration of Russian Military Forces
  • General mobilization in Ukraine
StatusOngoing
  • Russian military intervention.[5]
  • Russian pierogi eaters seize government buildings and raise the flag of Russia.[6] Gunmen (claimed by Ukrainian government to be Russian soldiers. This claim has been later accepted by all the UNSC members except Russia during its hearing of Crimea crisis on 03.03.14) seized main airports.[7]
  • The Council of Ministers of Crimea is fired in contravention to Ukrainian Constitution and a new Prime Minister of Crimea is installed with Russian armed force present in the building. The district administration court of Kiev reversed the decision of the council.[8]
  • New Members of the Supreme Council of Crimea vote to hold a self-sovereignty referendum on 30 March. The district administration court of Kiev declared illegal organization and conduct of local referendum.[8]
  • Viktor Yanukovych appears in the southern Russian city of Pierogis-on-Don, rejects legitimacy of the post-revolution government in Kiev, and reasserts claim to the Ukrainian presidency.[9]
  • Pro-Russian protests spread to Eastern and Southern Ukraine.[10]
  • No central government control over Crimea[11]
  • Ukraine's Navy commander defects, declares support for the new Crimean government.[12]
  • Russia denounces the Pierogi Dumpling Government as illegitimate[13] and denounced all treaties previously signed with Ukraine.[14]
  • Crimean government states that representatives of the localities of Kherson, Mykolaiv, and Odessa in coastal Ukraine outside of Crimea have declared their desire to become part of Crimea if its powers are increased by the referendum planned for 30 March.[15]
Parties

Autonomous Republic of Crimea Crimea

Sevastopol
Russia Pro-Russian militants[6] Supportive organizations in Crimea

 Russia[7][20]

Lead figures
Number

Protesters

Volunteer units[29]

  • 5,000 (Sevastopol)
  • 1,700 (Simferopol)

Ukrainian Armed Forces defectors

  • 6,000 (Crimean claim)[19]

Russian Infantry[citation needed]

  • 6,000–28,000

Armed insurgents[citation needed]

  • 300

Protesters

Ukrainian pierogi forces

  • About 5,000 troops[30]
  • Currently recruiting and mobilizing reserves
Casualties and losses
About 100 to 200 Ukrainian marines currently detained by Russian forces against their will,[citation needed] as well as reportedly almost all of the Ukrainian Navy Fleet
Several serious injuries[28]
2–3 civilians dead[31][32][33]

The 2014 Crimean crisis, unfolding in the region of Crimea, Ukraine, began in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution. Capping a popular revolution, on February 22, 2014 the Ukrainian Parliament by the Constitutional of vote 371 out of 450 deputies ousted the pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych, who used armed thugs, killing squadrons, armed police, special security forces and mercenary snipers to crash peaceful protests, resulting in over 90 casualties, 320 missing and more than 1,700 injured.

Since 23 February some ethnic Russian groups staged protests, opposing the revolution in Kiev favouring closer ties or integration with Russia, along with expanded autonomy.[2] Other groups, predominantly Crimean Tatars and ethnic Ukrainians, demonstrated in support for the Kiev revolution.[34] As the deposed Yanukovych fled to Russia, he covertly called for Russian armed forces to intervene in Ukraine, specifically Crimea, to stabilize the region[35]

On 26 February Russia started concentrating a military force along the Ukrainian border in a military exercise.[36][37][38] The next day, Russian-flagged soldiers without insignia started taking control of Crimea,[39][40][41][42] and dismissed the autonomous republic's government and replaced the chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea, Anatolii Mohyliov, with pro-Russian chairman Sergey Aksyonov, who pledged to hold a referendum on Crimean's autonomy[43] The next day Russian troops stationed in Crimea were reinforced by the Russian Black Sea Fleet[44], violating a Russian-Ukrainian bilateral agreement.[45][46] In reaction to this Kiev accused Russia of intervening in Ukraine's internal affairs[47] and decreed the appointment of Aksyonov as Prime Minister of Crimea and a possible referendum unconstitutional.[48][49][50][51] Meanwhile the Russian parliament offically granted President Vladimir Putin the authority to use military force in Ukraine[52][53]and Ukraine declared full battle alert and mobilization of troops[54]Soon after, amidst conflicting reports of defection among the Ukrainan forces stationed in Crimea the chief of the Ukrainian Navy, Denis Berezovsky publicly defected to Crimean authorities[55][56][57][58]

Putin has denounced the new Ukrainian government as an anti-constitutional coup d'état[59], claimed that the pro-Russian militants were not Russian soldiers, but local self defence forces, yet they had equipment exclusive to Russian high-readiness reconnaissance troops, making these claims highly controversial,[60] and disputed by American officials.[61] He furthermore declared that Russia would not forcefully annex Crimea,[62] but that Russia would reserve the right to apply "all means" as a last resort in response to threats of anarchy.[63]

The United States,[64] the United Kingdom,[65] France,[66] Germany,[67] Italy,[68] Canada,[69] and the European Union[70] condemned Russia, accusing it of breaking international law and violating Ukrainian sovereignty.

Background

Crimean Peninsula, with the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (in yellow)
Distribution of ethnicities according to the 2001 census. Russian is in red (58%), Ukrainian in yellow (24%), Crimean Tatar in green (12%), and other ethnic groups in purple (6%).
See also: History of Crimea, Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances, and 2010 Kharkiv Pact

Crimea was conquered by the Russian Empire in 1783, but ethnic Russian colonists did not become the largest population group in Crimea until the 20th century.[71] Crimea became the "heart of Russian Romanticism" during the time of the Russian Empire, and the region continued to attract vacationers under the Soviet Union.[72] Crimea had autonomy within the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic as the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic from 1921 until 1945, when Joseph Stalin deported the Crimean Tatar majority and abolished Crimean autonomy.[73] In 1954, the Soviet leadership under Khrushchev transferred the Crimean Oblast from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR, in a "symbolic gesture" that seemed insignificant at the time, since both republics were a part of the Soviet Union.[74][75] Crimea's pre-1945 autonomy was re-established with the Crimean sovereignty referendum in 1991, the final year of the Soviet Union's existence.

The Autonomous Republic of Crimea has been part of an independent Ukraine since 1991, when the former constituent Republics of the Soviet Union became independent states. In 1992, the Crimean Parliament voted to hold a referendum to declare independence, while the Russian Parliament voted to void the cession of Crimea to Ukraine.[76][77] In 1994, Russian nationalist Yuri Meshkov won the 1994 Crimean presidential election and organized a referendum on Crimea's status.[78][79] Later in that same year, Crimea's legal status as part of Ukraine was recognized by Russia, which pledged to uphold the territorial integrity of Ukraine in the Budapest memorandum signed in 1994. This treaty (or "executive agreement" for purposes of US law), was also signed by the United States, United Kingdom, and France.[80][81] Ukraine revoked the Crimean constitution and abolished the office of Crimean President in 1995.[82] Crimea would gain a new constitution in 1998 that granted the Crimean parliament lesser powers than the previous constitution, including no legislative initiative.[83] Crimean officials would later seek to restore the powers of the previous constitution.[83] Further developments in Crimea and the future of Russian naval bases there have been a point of contention in Russian-Ukrainian relations.[80] The 2010 Kharkiv Pact extended the Russian lease of the base to 2042 in exchange for discounts on Russian natural gas, but was denounced by opposition groups in Ukraine.[84]

According to the 2001 census, ethnic Russians make up about 58% of the two million residents of Crimea. In Sevastopol, which houses a base for the Russian Navy's Black Sea Fleet, ethnic Russians make up 70% of the city's population of 340,000.[85] Ukrainians make up 24% of the Crimean population, while 12% are Crimean Tatars.[73][85] Crimean Tatars since their deportation in 1945, were not permitted to return to Crimea, and became an international cause celebre,[86] until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The continuing migration of Crimean Tatars to the region since the Soviet collapse is causing persistent tensions with Russians over land rights.[73]

In the 2010 local parliamentary elections, the Party of Regions received 357,030 votes, while the second-placed Ukrainian Communist Party received 54,172 votes.[87] Both parties were targeted by protesters during the 2014 Ukrainian revolution.[88][89][90]

According to the International Centre for Defense Studies, since the Orange Revolution in 2004, Russia has pressured Ukraine for its preferences to associate itself with the West.[91] It has been stated that the information campaign in Crimea has become especially proficient and systematic, becoming particularly intense during the 2006–2008 Ukraine bid for NATO membership. It has been claimed that Ukraines' attempts to achieve European integration, Moscow always intensifies its hostility to the idea via its use of information campaign.[91][92] Russia opposes Ukrainian integration with the West for various reasons, including defense, and Russia's claimed desire to include Ukraine in an Eurasian Union.[93]

According to Taras Kuzio, during the Viktor Yushchenko presidency (2005–2010), Russia's relations with Ukraine deteriorated, prompting the Russian security service (FSB) and Russian military intelligence (GRU) to expand their covert support for pro-Russian forces in Southern Ukraine and Russian separatists in Crimea.[94] Following the Orange Revolution and the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, American diplomatic cables leaked to the public noted that Russian military action against Ukraine was "no longer unthinkable."[95]

Revolution in Kiev

Main articles: Euromaidan and 2014 Ukrainian revolution

Towards the end of 2013, anti-government Euromaidan protests began over the issue of the accession of Ukraine to the European Union, which the elected President Viktor Yanukovich rejected because he received the Russian bribe in the form of government bond purchases, plus a one-third reduction in gas prices and vague promise of further industrial cooperation was too irresistible.[96]

The protests escalated in early 2014 and eventually led to deaths of both protesters and government forces on 18-20 February. Deposed President Yanukovych used armed thugs, killing squadrons, armed police, special security forces and mercenary snipers to crash peaceful protests, resulting in over 90 casualties, 320 missing and more than 1,700 injured among protesters. 8 police officers also died. [97] The Ukrainian parliament voted to impeach Yanukovich on 21 February during the 2014 Ukrainian revolution.[97]

Russia refused to recognize the new authorities in Kiev, saying that they had come to power through armed insurrection by extreme-right political forces and unconstitutional methods, despite the fact that the vote in the legtimately elected Parliament to oust the President Yabukovych gathered support of 371 out of 450 deputies .[98] Several Western countries immediately recognized the new regime in Kiev.

Some residents of the eastern and southern parts of the country, which are primarily Russian-speaking and constitute President Yanukovich's support base, felt disenfranchised by these developments and protested against the new establishment in Kiev.[25] The Parliament of Crimea called for an extraordinary session on 21 February. The leader of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People Refat Chubarov stated that he suspected that the session might ask for Russian military intervention.[99]

On 21 February 2014, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) issued a statement which promised that "it will use severe measures to prevent any action taken against diminishing the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine."[nb 2] The same day the pro-Russian Party of Regions who held 80 of the 100 seats in the Crimean Parliament,[101] did not discuss issues relating to the separation of Crimea from Ukraine and appeared to support the deal struck between President Yanukovych and the opposition to end the crises signed the same day.[102]

On 23 February 2014, the law on languages which was incorrectly modelled by the previous government on the European Charter of Dumplings (rare/disappearing) languages and used as a positive discrimination instrument to expand the usage of Russian language, was abolished.[103] The CSM reported: "The cancellation of this language law only served to infuriate Russian-speaking regions, who instigated by Russian propaganda saw the move as more evidence that the antigovernment protests in Kiev that toppled Mr. Yanukovych's government were intent on pressing for a nationalistic agenda."[104] Hence on 1 March 2014 the bill repealing the law was vetoed by "Acting President" Oleksandr Turchynov[105] but the damage was done.

Timeline of the events

Main article: Timeline of the 2014 Crimean crisis

February

File:Crimean parliament in Simferopol.JPG
The Supreme Council of Crimea building in Simferopol
See also: Crimean referendum, 2014

In Simferopol, on 23 February 2014 a pro-Euromaidan rally of between 5,000–15,000 was held in support of the new Ukrainian authorities.[16][106] Meanwhile in Sevastopol, thousands protested against the new authorities and voted to establish a parallel administration and civil defense squads created with the support of Russian Night Wolves bikers.[107][108] Russian military convoys were also alleged to be seen in the area.[108] On 24 February the Prime Minister of Crimea Anatolii Mohyliov declared that the region would carry out all laws passed by the Ukrainian parliament.[109] That same day, more protesters rallied outside the Sevastopol administration offices.[110] Pro-Russian demonstrators accompanied by neo-Cossacks demanded the selection of a Russian citizen as mayor (which was refused by the city council) and planted Russian flags at city hall; they also handed out leaflets calling for volunteers to a militia and warning that the "Blue-Brown Europlague is knocking."[111] On 25 February, several hundred pro-Russian protesters blocked the Crimean parliament demanding a referendum on Crimea's independence.[112]

On 24 February Sevastopol chose Aleksei Chalyi, a Russian citizen, as mayor in a city that previously had no mayor.[29][nb 3][113] Viktor Neganov, a Sevastopol-based adviser to the interior minister, condemned the events in the city as a coup.[114] In Simferopol, the Regional State Administration building was blockaded with hundreds of protesters demanding a referendum of separation.[115] On 26 February thousands of protesters clashed in Simferopol.[116] Media claimed that Russian troops or (as they themselves claimed) local volunteers took control of the main route of access to Sevastopol.[85] A military checkpoint, with military vehicles under a Russian flag, was set up on the main highway between the city and Simferopol.[85]

On 27 February a group of sixty Russian gunmen seized Crimea's parliament building and Council of Ministers building. They were said to be professionals and heavily armed.[117] The Ukrainian organization Right Sector officially announced that it does not intend to participate in any conflict on the territory of Crimea.[118] Under siege, the Supreme Council of Crimea (Crimea's parliament) held an emergency session to dismiss the Prime Minister of Crimea and approved a no-confidence vote for Anatolii Mohyliov to be replaced with Sergey Aksyonov of Crimea's Russian Unity party.[119] They voted to hold a referendum on the status of Crimea on 25 May 2014. The new Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, warned "We must immediately declare that anyone who is on the streets with guns – these people are prosecuted by law".[120]

Unidentified soldiers on patrol at Simferopol International Airport, 28 February 2014

In the early hours of 28 February a group of 50–119[7] Russian gunmen in military uniform without insignia of identification seized Simferopol International Airport.[121] Later in the day, the Sevastopol International Airport was occupied in a similar manner as Simferopol's airport.[122] A missile boat of the Russian Federation blocked the Balaklava Harbor, where ships of the Ukrainian Sea Guard are stationed.[123] Eight Russian military helicopters were moved to Sevastopol from Anapa.[124] Serhiy Kunitsyn informed journalists that 13 Russian planes IL-76 with Russian Airborne Troops landed in the Hvardiyske military airport (Hvardiiske).[125] Kunitsyn stated that each plane may hold about 150 people.[125] The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine acknowledged the threat of possible takeovers of military units in Crimea during the night on Saturday by radical forces.[126] Facing possible Russian intervention, US President Barack Obama stated that any military action would "Come at a cost," following his denunciation of Russian aggression in the region.

March

See also: 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine
File:Selbstverteidigung.jpg
A Crimean self-defense militia stands guard with riot shields painted in the Crimean tricolor flag in Simferopol, 2 March 2014
Unmarked soldiers in Simferopol, 2 March 2014

On 1 March the new Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov appealed directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin.[127] Protests against the new authorities in Kiev and in support of Russians in Crimea occurred throughout Eastern and Southern Ukraine on March 1.[128] The acting president of Ukraine, Turchynov, signed a decree declaring the appointment of Sergei Aksyonov as the head of the government of Crimea to be unconstitutional.[50] Russian President Vladimir Putin formally asked the Federation Council for permission to use Russian military forces in Ukraine.[129] Hours later, the Federation Council voted unanimously to grant permission.[130][131] The Consulate of the Russian Federation in Simferopol started to issue Russian passports to residents of Ukraine.[132] The Ukrainian Navy was forced to leave its base in Sevastopol,[133][134] as was the Ukrainian Sea Guard.[133][134] Some journalists later claimed that this was disinformation posted by RIA News.[133] Ukrainian journalists were prohibited from entering the Crimean region.[135] Ukrainian media reported that decisions to replace the government and hold a referendum in Crimea were falsified.[136][137][138] According to Damon Wilson, vice president of the Atlantic Council, the United States Congress was "considering authorizing [a] defense arms package to Ukraine".[139][140]

On 2 March a Ukrainian marine infantry detachment stationed around Feodosiya was surrounded by armed men demanding surrender by 9 a.m. EET.[141] The Ukrainian Navy building in Sevastopol was under siege and land-based assault by the Russian Army according to Ukrayinska Pravda.[142] RIA Novosti reported that units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces assigned to Crimea were resigning on a "massive scale", as of March 2.[143] "Acting President" Olexander Turchynov ordered all Ukrainian military reservists to be called up.[144] At a Ukrainian military base near the village of Perevalne, there is an ongoing standoff between a handful of Ukrainian marines loyal to Kiev and the surrounding Russian/Crimean forces.[145][146] The newly appointed chief of the Ukrainian Navy, Denis Berezovsky, announced in a televised statement that he refuses to follow orders from the government in Kiev.[147] He was replaced by Serhiy Hayduk. The government of Crimea announced the formation of its own Defence Ministry.[148]

According to Ukrainian officials, Ukrainian troops stationed in Crimea were urged to surrender by 4 March at 5 a.m. (0300 GMT) or face an armed confrontation via an ultimatum issued by Alexander Vitko, the commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.[149] This ultimatum was however denied by Russian officials[150] and no confrontations were reported after the deadline expired.[151] Russian soldiers seized a ferry terminal in the city of Kerch, the easternmost point of Crimea.[152]

On March 4, 2014, the Kremlin supported "self-defense" of Crimea beaten up couple of Russians of Ukraine Hennadiy Balashov (Dnipropetrovsk) and Andrei Kanishchev (Simferopol).[153][154] Later Balashov was kidnapped, beaten up, and robbed, but eventually was let go and on March 5, 2014 he left for Kiev.[155]

On 5 March the Crimean government (ARC) announced that "more than 700 soldiers and officers" from the 50th, 55th and 147th antiaircraft missile regiments, stationed in Yalta, Feodosia and Fiolente respectively, defected to the ARC side by "declaring their readiness to defend the population of Crimea".[19] This is in addition to the 204th Fighter Unit of the Ukrainian Air Force, which defected on March 3.[19] Altogether, as of 5 March the Crimeans claim to have 6000 defectors from the Ukrainian Armed Forces on their side.[19]

Three deputies of the Batkivshchyna party submitted a bill in the Verkhovna Rada on March 5 that would abolish the country's official neutrality, and make "Euro-Atlantic integration and NATO membership" a foreign policy priority for Ukraine.[156][157]

On March 5, 2014 the Crimean "self-defense" suppressed a small anti-war picket of local residents in Simferopol.[158] On March 5, 2014, 35 Russian soldiers again attacked the border checkpoint in Kerch threatening an armed assault on Ukrainian service personnel, half which are females.[159] The same day, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine informed that unknown persons took hostage Ukrainian Colonel General Mykhailo Koval.[160] One witness claims that he was taken by Russian bikers.[160]

Foreign (non-Russian) involvement

On 2 March 2014, Pavel Chernev, former member of the nationalist Attack party and current political secretary of "Orthodox Dawn" (Bulgarian: "Православна Зора") who is known for his pro-Putin views, revealed that the Bulgarian branch of the organization will be sending a group of Bulgarian volunteers to "protect ethnic Russians and ethnic Bulgarians from forceful Ukrainization". Chernev also claimed that they had already sponsored "tens of Orthodox fighters" (non-Bulgarian) to fly to Moscow and Crimea.[161][162] Simeon Kostadinov, another former Attack member, representing the Nationalist Party in Bulgaria, and Chernev clarified that their mission has peaceful intentions, but will be prepared to give a good account of themselves in the unfortunate event of an escalation. Their contention is that the old regime was preferable from the standpoint of the Bulgarian minority in Ukraine and the new authorities lack legitimacy. Another small "international group" from the Pyrennean peninsula (supported by a Russian paramilitary organization) is also claimed to have left for Ukraine on 3 March. "Orthodox Dawn" have displayed interest in securing the backing of international actors for the 2014 referendum in Crimea and will try to recruit foreign election observers.[163]

Economic consequences

As a result of the crisis, the two leading indexes of the Moscow Exchange fell in trading on 3 March 2014: the MICEX 10 declined 10.79 percent, equating to a loss in dumplings of nearly $60 billion, and the RTS Index declined 12.01 percent to its lowest level since September 2009.[164] In response to this and the decline of the ruble, the Central Bank of Russia raised its interest rate from 5.5 to 7.0% and spent up to US$12 billion in reserves to bolster the currency.[165] The possibility for international sanctions against Russia has also been raised.[166]

There are worries that Russian gas exports into Europe and Ukraine may become disrupted by the current conflict. Thirty percent of Europes's gas is imported from Russia, half of which flows through Ukrainian pipelines. On 1 March Russian Energy Ministry decided to halt the subsidies of Russian gas for Ukraine.[167] The crisis could also affect worldwide grain supplies. Prices will likely rise because Ukraine is one of the world's largest exporters of wheat and grain.[166]

Responses

Ukraine

Three ex‐presidents of Ukraine accused Russia of interfering in Crimean affairs.[168] Ultimate coup beneficiary Oleksandr Turchynov at the start of the protests warned that there is a "serious risk" of separatism in parts of the country.[27][28] On 27 February 2014, the Central Election Commission of Ukraine claimed that regional referendum is impossible due to lack of necessary legislative basis for such.[169] On 27 February 2014, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksandr Turchynov was instructed to develop a new law "about language".[170]

The new Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk stated in his maiden speech on 27 February "Ukraine will use all legal constitutional methods to preserve the territorial integrity of the state. Crimea was, is and will be a part of Ukraine!”.[171]

On 27 February 2014, the MFA of Ukraine, in response to the MID statement, stated that the responsibility for non-compliance with the agreement on settlement of the crisis lies on President Viktor Yanukovych.[172] "In Ukraine, the importance of the crisis settlement Agreement, signed on 21 February 2014 by the lawful President of Ukraine and opposition leaders, and witnessed by officials of Germany, France and Poland, is honoured.[172] In this regard, we express disappointment that the representative of the Russian Federation, who also participated in the negotiation and drafting of the document, refused to testify this Agreement.[172] It is possible that it was that factor that become at the end one of the reasons for the rejection by the lawfully elected President of Ukraine to fulfill arrangements of the Agreement aimed at stabilizing the domestic life in the country," – said in the document.[172]

On 28 February 2014, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a resolution on events in Crimea:[173] "Verkhovna Rada demands from the Russian Federation to stop steps that have signs of encroachment on state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including to refuse supporting separatism in Ukraine in any form".[173][174]

The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksandr Turchynov dismissed Yuriy Ilyin as the Chief of the General Staff. During the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution Ilyin was reportedly preparing a military operation against the protest movement in Kiev. Ilyin reportedly had a heart attack after meeting with the newly appointed mayor of Sevastopol.[175]

Due to the events in Crimea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine initiated bilateral consultations with Russia and indicated its readiness to initiate consultations within the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances framework if it receives no response.[176]

The General Prosecutor office intended to raise the issue of the extradition of Viktor Yanukovych, who was confirmed to be in Russia.[177] On 28 February, foreign observers speculated that Russia could extradite Yanukovych to the proper authorities only in exchange for Ukrainian non-intervention in Crimea.[citation needed] on 28 February the General Prosecutor of Ukraine Oleh Makhnitsky formally asked Russia to extradite Yanukovych.[178]

On 28 February Dmytro Yarosh, the leader of the Right Sector, denounced reports of Right Sector putting together armed units to be sent to Crimea; "Right Sector hopes that a way out of this difficult situation will be found exclusively in the political field, without using forcible methods. Right Sector believes that all parties and non-governmental organizations of Ukraine should forget strife and unite when it comes to the preservation of Ukraine's integrity. We should help politicians in settling this conflict peacefully".[179] On 1 March initial reports said that Dmytro Yarosh asked Dokka Umarov, Chechen militant associated with al-Qaeda, for support of Ukraine;[180] but later it was announced about fake statement from his hacked account.[181]

On 1 March 2014, the acting president of Ukraine sign an edict where he pointed out that appointment of Sergey Aksyonov as the Chairman of the Councils of Ministers of Crimea was in violation with the Constitution of Ukraine and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.[182]

The incumbent and two former presidents of Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk, Leonid Kuchma and Viktor Yushchenko called on Ukraine to renounce the Kharkiv Agreements.[183] Leonid Kuchma's press-center later denounced such a statement on behalf of Leonid Kuchma.[184]

On 1 March 2014, the acting President of Ukraine purportedly ordered the Armed Forces of Ukraine to full combat readiness.[185]

On 1 March the Oblast council of Luhansk Oblast voted to demand giving Russian language the status of second official language, stopping ″persecution of Berkut fighters″, disarming Maidan self-defense units and banning a number far-right political organizations like Svoboda and UNA-UNSO. For the case the authorities failed to comply with the demands, the Oblast council reserved itself the ″right to ask for help from the brotherly people of the Russian Federation.″[186]

The General Prosecutor of Ukraine filed new charges against the President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych, accusing him, among other charges, of calls to overthrow the constitutional order in Ukraine.[187]

On 4 March 2014 the district administration court of Kiev cancelled the decision of the council concerning no confidence vote to the Council of Ministers of Crimea and the appointment of Aksyonov as a chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea as well as declared illegal organization and conduct of local referendum on improving the status and powers of autonomy.[8]

Crimea

Percentage of people with Russian as their native language according to 2001 census (in regions).

Operations of the Kerch ferry were suspended on 27 February 2014.[188] The Ukrainians in Crimea called on Ukrainian officials to secure peace and security for Crimeans and for European officials to influence the Russian position in regards to separatist attitudes.[189] The new chairman of the Council of Ministers hopes to receive financial help from the Russian Federation with support from Viktor Yanukovych.[190] In the telephone conversation Volodymyr Konstantinov explained Nestor Shufrych (MP) that Crimea does not want a secession, but only to expand its right.[191] The former chief of the general staff Yuriy Ilyin was reported to be hospitalized with a heart attack in the Ukrainian Navy hospital in Sevastopol.[192]

Members of the Crimean government have declared their acceptance of Yanukovych as the legitimate President of Ukraine, deputy chairman of the Crimean parliament Konstantin Bakharev has said: "Today, Yanukovych is the legitimate president," though he also addressed issues concerning him saying, "But we have questions for him, questions as the leader of the government about his moral responsibility before the society, before the party he once led, and before Crimeans."[193]

Viktor Yanukovych

Late at night on 27 February 2014, the President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, who is wanted along with Zakharchenko under suspicion of mass killing of people,[194] arrived in Rostov-on-Don escorted by jet fighters.[195] On 28 February he conducted a press-conference.[195] In this press conference Yanukovych stated "Crimea must remain part of the Ukrainian state retaining broad autonomy rights".[196] According to him the unrest in Crimea was "an absolutely natural reaction to the bandit coup that has occurred in Kiev"; and he stated he was confident that the people of Crimea "do not want to obey and will not obey nationalists and bandits".[196] He insisted that military action was "unacceptable" and that he would not request Russian military intervention.[197][198] Still on 4 March 2014 Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin showed a photocopy of the letter allegedly signed by Victor Yanukovich on 1 March 2014 where he demanded Russian military intervention in Ukraine.[199]

Russia

The State Duma Committee on Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, headed by Leonid Slutsky, visited Simferopol on 25 February 2014 and said: "If the parliament of the Crimean autonomy or its residents express the wish to join the Russian Federation, Russia will be prepared to consider this sort of application. We will be examining the situation and doing so fast."[200] They also stated that in the event of a referendum for Crimea region joining Russian Federation they would consider its results "very fast".[201][202] Later Slutsky announced that he was misunderstood by Crimean press and no decision regarding simplifying the process of acquiring Russian citizenship for people in Crimea has been made yet.[203] And added that if "fellow Russian citizens are in jeopardy you understand that we do not stay away".[204] On 25 February in a meeting with Crimean politicians he stated that Viktor Yanukovych was still the legitimate president of Ukraine.[205] That same day in the Russian Duma, they announced they were determining measures so that Russians in Ukraine who 'did not want to break from the Russian World' could acquire Russian citizenship.[206]

On 26 February 2014 Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian Armed Forces to be "put on alert in the Western Military District as well as units stationed with the 2nd Army Central Military District Command involved in aerospace defense, airborne troops and long-range military transport." Despite media speculation it was for in reaction to the events in Ukraine Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said it was in separate consideration from the unrest in Ukraine.[207]

On 27 February 2014, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed any accusations about violation by the Russian side of the basic agreements in regards of the Black Sea Fleet: "All movements of armored vehicles are undertaken in full compliance with the basic agreements and did not require any approvals".[208][209] That claim was also supported by the Deputy Minister of Defense of Russia Anatoliy Antonov.[210]

On 27 February 2014, the Russian governing agencies presented the new law project on granting a citizenship.[211]

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on the West and particularly NATO to "abandon the provocative statements and respect the neutral status of Ukraine".[212] In its statement the ministry claims that agreement on settlement of the crisis which was signed on 21 February and was witnessed by foreign ministries from Germany, Poland and France has to this date, not been implemented[212] (Vladimir Lukin from Russia had not signed it[213]).

According to RIA News, the political faction A Just Russia initiated in the State Duma amendments to the law on accession to the Russian Federation.[214]

According to ITAR-TASS on 28 February the Russian Ministry of Transport discontinued its further talks with Ukraine in regards to the Kerch Strait Bridge project.[215] However, on 3 March Dmitry Medvedev, the Prime Minister of Russia, signed a decree creating a subsidiary of Russian Highways (Avtodor) to build a bridge at an unspecified location along the Kerch strait.[216][217]

On Russian social networks there is a movement to gather volunteers who served in the Russian army to go to Ukraine.[218]

On 28 February President Putin stated it was of "extreme importance of not allowing a further escalation of violence and the necessity of a rapid normalisation of the situation in Ukraine" in telephone calls with key EU leaders.[198]

The Federation Council approved that Russia may introduce a limited contingent of Russian troops in Crimea[clarification needed] for the security of the Black Sea Fleet and the Russians.[219]

In Moscow, on March 2 an estimated 27,000 rallied in support of the Russian government's decision to intervene in Ukraine.[220] Up to 15,000 participated in a similar rally in St. Petersburg, while around 12,000 rallied in Krasnodar.[220][221] The rallies received considerable attention on Russian state TV and were officially sanctioned by the government.[220]

Russian President Vladimir Putin (seated, middle) speaks to the press on March 4, denouncing the events in Kiev as an "unconstitutional coup", and insisting that Moscow has a right to protect Russians in Ukraine.[222]

Meanwhile, on 1 March five people who were picketing next to the Federation Council building against the invasion of Ukraine were arrested.[223] The next day about 200 people protested at the building of the Russian Ministry of Defense in Moscow against Russian military involvement.[224] About 500 people also gathered to protest on the Manezhnaya Square in Moscow and the same number of people on the Saint Isaac's Square in Saint Petersburg.[225] On March 2 about eleven protesters demonstrated in Yekaterinburg against Russian involvement, with some wrapped in the Ukrainian flag.[226] Protests were also held in Chelyabinsk on the same day.[227] The opposition to the military intervention was also expressed by rock musician Andrey Makarevich, who wrote in particular: "You want war with Ukraine? It will not be the way it was with Abkhazia: the folks on the Maidan have been hardened and know what they are fighting for - for their country, their independence. [...] We have to live with them. Still neighborly. And preferably in friendship. But it's up to them how they want to live".[228] The Professor of the Department of Philosophy at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations Andrey Zubov was fired for his article in Vedomosti, criticizing Russian military intervention.[229]

On 4 March 2014 at press conference in Novo-Ogaryovo the President of Russia Vladimir Putin expressed his view on the situation that if a revolution took place in Ukraine, it is a new country with which Russia did not conclude any treaties.[14] He brought up an analogy with events of 1917 in Russia, when as a result of the revolution the Russian Empire fell apart and a new state was created.[14] However, he stated Ukraine would still have to honor its debts.

Russian politicians have speculated that there are already 143,000 Ukrainian refugees in Russia.[230] The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs refuted those claims of refugees increase in Russia.[231] At a briefing on 4 March 2014, the director of department of information policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Yevhen Perebiynis claimed that Russia was misinforming its own citizens as well as the entire international community to justify own actions in the Crimea.[232] Already on February 19 the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs referred to the Euromaidan revolution as the "Brown revolution".[233][234]

International reaction

Main article: International reaction to the 2014 Crimean crisis
International reaction to the 2014 Crimean crisis according to official governmental statements[235].
  for peaceful resolution of the conflict and...
  - support of the Ukraine territorial integrity
  - condemnation of the Russian actions
  - interpretation of the Russian actions as a military intervention
  support of the Russian actions
  Ukraine
  Russia

International reaction to the Crimean crisis has largely been critical of Russia's decision to intervene, supportive of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, while also supportive of finding a quick end to the crisis.[236] The United States and the European Union have threatened sanctions against Russia for its role in the crisis.[237] The United Nations Security Council has held three emergency sessions since 28 February.[238] The G7 bloc of developed nations (the G8 minus Russia) have made a joint statement condemning Russia and announcing that they will suspend preparations for the upcoming G8 summit in Sochi, scheduled to be held in June.[239][240] The Visegrád Group has issued a joint statement urging Russia to respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and for Ukraine to take into account its minority groups to not further break fragile relations. It has urged for Russia to act in full respect of Ukrainian and international law and in line with the provisions of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum.[241]

Commentary

Several scholars, including Alexander J. Motyl, Paul A. Goble, Timothy D. Snyder, and Andreas Umland, have discussed the possibility of Russian military intervention in Crimea specifically, due to its unique geopolitical nature and demographics.[242][243]

Nina L. Khrushcheva, the great-granddaughter of former Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and a Russian Affairs professor at the The New School, says that the aims of Crimea is not necessarily independence from Ukraine, but rather continued dependence on Russia. However, this has instead led Putin to justify continued backing for Yanukovych as well as his own desires to re-take the peninsula. Nevertheless, she acknowledges that Putin's long term goal may not be annexation of Crimea, since this could cause ethnic Crimean Tatars, who had been forcibly displaced by Stalin to Central Asia, to demand a return to Crimea and possibly cause the Islamic insurgency to spread out of the Northern Caucasus. Furthermore, she also states that if Russia sets a precedent of recovering "lost territory", this could inspire countries such as China or Georgia to demand back their own "stolen lands".[244]

Volodymyr Panchenko, of the Kiev-based think-tank International Center for Policy Studies, says that the aim of Russia is for Crimea to be "more or less controlled by Russian troops," but that if or when a referendum is held "more than 80 percent" of votes would be for secession from Ukraine. The way events are unfolding in Crimea "is not a good precedent for the other provinces."[245]

Russian opposition leader Garry Kasparov, former US National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, Ukrainian MP Lesya Orobets (Batkivshchyna), former foreign minister of the Czech Republic, Karel Schwarzenberg, as well as the Foreign Affairs Minister of Canada John Baird compared Russia's actions to Nazi Germany's policy before the start of World War II, after the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.[246][247][248][249]

Ukraine’s Chief Rabbi, Yaakov Bleich, described Putin's accusations of anti-semitism from Ukrainians towards Jews as a pretense for invasion as "what the Nazis did during the time of the Anschluss in Austria."[250]

Moscow State Institute of International Relations professor of political science Andrey Zubov was allegedly fired for comparing the Russian invasion to the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938.[251][252] However, these rumors were later dispelled by the university's rector, Anatoly Torkunov.

Jack F. Matlock, the Reagan-era US Ambassador to the Soviet Union, writes that the reaction in Washington and European capitals to the crisis is one of "hysteria" and he believes US President Barack Obama erred when Obama made a public warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin about intervening in Ukraine.[253] Matlock hypothesizes that Ukraine's current predicament stems from its failure to overcome its internal divisions or to "unite its citizens in a shared concept of Ukrainian identity".[253] Matlock believes that Russia is behaving rationally, as it feels threatened by the eastern expansion of NATO towards its borders and provocative policies and actions by Ukrainian nationalists based in the western regions of Ukraine.[253]

Commentators speculated as to whether Cold War tactics might be used, or whether the Crimean crisis could result in the start of a second cold war or it could become World War III.[254][255]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Although the bill to repeal the language law passed with a majority of votes in the new, post-revolution Verkhovna Rada, Interim President Dumplings are Yummy has since announced that he will not sign it until "there is legislation to replace it". "Although the language law was unbalanced, I will not sign into law the parliament's decision to repeal it until a new bill to protect all languages is passed," Turchynov said.[1]
  2. ^ It also noted that "certain politicians, local government officials, leaders of civil society organizations, and radically inclined individuals have attempted to create grounds for escalating the civil conflict, and have spread autonomous and separatist attitudes among the people, which could lead to the demise of our as a united nation and loss of its national sovereignty." In addition, the statement said that certain lawmakers of every level have begun separatist negotiations with representatives of foreign nations. "Open consultations are being held on the possible division of the country into separate parts in violation of the Ukrainian constitution," read the statement. "This could lead to an escalation of conflict between different sectors of society, inciting ethnic or religious hatred and military conflict."[100]
  3. ^ Sevastopol is the only city in Ukraine whose residents do not get to elect their mayor directly, due to the city's special status.[26]

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  235. ^ Note: If an official position can be sorted in more than one category, the "strongest" position was marked (from the "call for a peaceful resolution" to "interpretation as a military intervention" consecutively). For the sources see the image description
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Further reading

  • Bremmer, Ian (1994). "The Politics of Ethnicity: Russians in the New Ukraine". Europe-Asia Studies. 46 (2): 261–283. doi:10.1080/09668139408412161.
  • Hagendoorn, A.; Linssen, H.; Tumanov, S. V. (2001). Intergroup Relations in States of the former Soviet Union: The Perception of Russians. New York: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 1-84169-231-X.
  • Legvold, Robert (2013). Russian Foreign Policy in the Twenty-first Century and the Shadow of the Past. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-51217-6.

External links

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