DISINFO: As a result of the bloody US-coup in Ukraine, Crimea seceded to Russia
SUMMARY
In Spring 2014, a bloody coup took place in Kyiv, which had been prepared by the USA for years, after which Crimea, with its predominantly Russian-speaking population, seceded from Ukraine. Since then, tighter sanctions have been continuously imposed on Russia for an alleged annexation of Crimea. However, this was not a violent takeover of the peninsula, as is constantly claimed. It was a peaceful secession after a referendum in which a high percentage of the inhabitants voted for the independence of Crimea. Afterwards, an application was made to join the Russian Federation. This is not objectionable under international law after the preceding events. "Annexation" is a fighting term used to accuse Russia of land theft.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the Euromaidan and the illegal annexation of Crimea.
There was no coup d'état in Ukraine. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was an organic reaction by numerous parts of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013. See the full debunk of this disinformation claim here.
No international body has recognised the so-called Crimea referendum, announced on 27 February 2014, and held on 16 March 2014. On 27 March 2014, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in which it stated that the referendum in Crimea was not valid and could not serve as a basis for any change in the status of the peninsula. On 17 December 2018, the UN General Assembly confirmed its non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea.
The European Union does not recognise and continues to strongly condemn this violation of international law, which remains a challenge to the international security order. In response to the illegal annexation of Crimea, the EU has imposed restrictive measures against the Russian Federation. In June 2021, the European Council decided to renew the sanctions introduced in response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation until 23 June 2022.
Read similar stories in our database claiming that a civil war began in Ukraine after the clique seized power in the country, or that the Russian Army is not involved in the war in Ukraine, or that the Crimean people chose to be with Russia through the democratic procedure, that Crimea never belonged to Ukraine, that Crimea’s reunification with Russia was legal and that Crimea is a Russian sovereign region.