State Department: "Crimea Is Ukraine"

Washington D.C./27.02.23/Turan:   The State Department on Sunday described Russia’s seizure of Crimea as "a clear violation of international law and of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

“The United States does not and never will recognize Russia’s purported annexation of the peninsula,” a department spokesman, Ned Price, said in a statement: “Crimea is Ukraine.”

Price's comments came on the 9th anniversary of Russia illegally annexing the territory.

The U.S. welcomes the efforts of Ukraine’s Crimea Platform to focus global attention on Russia’s continued occupation, Price added.

Michael Carpenter, the U.S. ambassador to the OSCE, on Sunday reminded that a majority of Crimean residents (54%) voted in a democratic referendum for Ukraine’s independence.

"Russia’s information ops are nothing but a smokescreen for a military occupation and illegal annexation," he tweeted.

Separately, Bridget Brink, the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, posted a video of herself recalling that on Feb. 26, 2014, thousands of Crimean Tatars and other Ukrainians gathered to declare, “We are Ukrainian. Crimea is Ukraine.”

"As you continue to fight for your sovereignty and democracy, the U.S. will work w/ you to create a future that affords everyone freedom, dignity, and justice," she noted.

Alex Raufoglu