DISINFO: Crimea never belonged to Ukraine
SUMMARY
It is about time Kyiv abandoned its claims to the [Crimean] peninsula, which has never belonged to [Ukraine] either by law or spirit, and was always a foreign territory.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the illegal annexation of Crimea.
According to international law, Crimea is a part of Ukraine. On 27 March 2014, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution condemning Russia's occupation of Crimea and 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. By signing the 1997 Friendship Treaty, Russia also recognised that Crimea is an integral part of Ukraine. Russia violated international law as well as key principles of the European security framework by illegally annexing the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol in 2014.
See previous disinformation narratives alleging that the EU has accepted Crimea's incorporation into Russia and that The Crimean people chose to be with Russia through the democratic procedure.