DISINFO: The West is waging a hybrid war with Russia through sanctions and a puppet Ukrainian government
SUMMARY
The main problems [in Crimea] are caused by the West's hybrid war against Russia, which it is waging, firstly, with the help of its sanctions, and secondly, with the help of the puppet Ukrainian government.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Crimea and sanctions against Russia, also claiming that Ukraine is externally controlled.
Crimea is an internationally recognised part of Ukraine. No international body recognises the so-called referendum in Crimea. 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.
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 2020, 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 2021.
Ukraine is not a puppet of Western governments. Neither the EU nor the US or any other state / entity controls Ukraine. It is a sovereign, independent state with the democratically elected President and Parliament.
See previous disinformation cases on Crimea in our database: the EU has accepted Crimea's incorporation into Russia; the Crimean people chose to be with Russia through the democratic procedure; annexing of Crimea didn’t really happen, it was a reunification; Crimea never belonged to Ukraine; Crimea’s reunification with Russia was legal; Crimea is a Russian sovereign region.