DISINFO: Crimea is formally part of Russia
SUMMARY
Until Khrushchev made the mistake of transferring Crimea to Ukraine in 1954, it was formally part of Russia, as it has been since 1783.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the illegal annexation of Crimea. Crimea is a part of Ukraine and was illegally annexed by Russia.
Crimea is an internationally recognised part of Ukraine. Іn 1997, by signing the Friendship Agreement with Ukraine, Russia also recognised that Crimea belongs to Ukraine.
On the 1991 Crimea sovereignty referendum, voters were asked whether they wanted to re-establish the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. 94% of voters supported the proposal, and the Supreme Council of Ukrainian SSR established the autonomous Crimean Republic within the territory of Ukraine. After Ukraine adopted a new constitution in 1996, Crimea maintained its autonomy. Crimea has its own parliament and government.
In 2014, Russian troops obliged the parliament of Crimea to organise a so-called referendum, which was illegitimate under international law, and then formally annexed the peninsula and brought it under Russian territorial control.
No international body recognises the so-called referendum in 2014. The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution entitled “Territorial integrity of Ukraine”, stating 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.
Historical background: Crimea was annexed by Russian empire, then containing Ukraine, in 1783, already in violation of a treaty which guaranteed the independence of the Tatar khanate. In 1897, the first comprehensive census of the population of the empire indicates that the Russians are only one third of the inhabitants of Crimea, where they are still slightly fewer than the indigenous Crimean Tatars. The Russians only became a majority after the complete deportation in 1944 of the Tatars, who could only return after the fall of the communist regime. The annexation of Crimea to the then Soviet Ukraine, in 1954, was not done on a not ethnic, but geographical and economic basis, since the peninsula was adjoining and economically depending from the mainland areas, it means, Ukraine. At that, in 1937 Russian Soviet Socialist Republic received Taganrog from Ukrainian Socialist Republic. But Russia is not ready to "give this gift back " to Ukraine. There were several interchanges of territories between USSR's republics, which are all now sovereign States recognised by international law.
Read also related cases: Russia has never violated the provisions of the Budapest Memorandum, Crimea rejoined Russia as a result of a popular referendum, Accusing Russia of annexing Crimea is ignoring its historical rights to the peninsula, Ukraine, USA and EU recognised the reunification of Crimea with Russia.