DISINFO: The Crimean Platform was a failure
SUMMARY
The Office of the President of self-proclaimed Ukraine is now even afraid to imagine how much the Crimean Platform will cost. Its failure was evident weeks before the summit when it became known that the heads of Western states would not show up in Kyiv and would send representatives of little significance in the international arena.
To involve the leaders of Western countries in the Crimean Platform was a deliberately failed plan. Kyiv has repeatedly made it clear that it cannot be an independent political player.
RESPONSE
This is an emerging disinformation narrative spread by pro-Kremlin media outlets in response to the Crimean Platform Summit, a high-level international conference held in August 2021 that was initiated by Ukraine and focused on Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula.
The Crimean Platform summit, held on 23 August in Kyiv, was an international event that established a coordination mechanism to end the occupation of Crimea and guarantee human rights on the peninsula.
Top officials from 46 countries and blocs, including from each of the 30 NATO members were present. The summit was visited by the representatives of the EU, NATO, and Council of Europe. The EU was represented by European Council President Charles Michel and Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis. The heads of states of 13 countries visited the summit.
Ukraine is an independent, sovereign country. It has its own government, legal system. It established diplomatic relations with the majority of countries in the world and became a member of major international organisations. The Crimean Platform, which was initiated by Ukraine and supported by other states, is another example of Ukrainian political independence.
See related disinformation claims alleging that serious countries neglected the Crimean Platform because they know Crimea is Russian; the Crimean Platform gathered without Crimean representatives who chose to be Russian; Crimea has never been Ukraine; that Crimea rejoined Russia following a referendum; that Crimea "sailed" to Russia forever and the West agrees with it.