We firmly reject and unequivocally condemn the illegal annexation by Russia of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. By wilfully undermining the rules-based international order and blatantly violating the fundamental rights of Ukraine to independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, core principles as enshrined in the UN Charter and international law, Russia is putting global security at risk.
We do not and will never recognise the illegal 'referenda' that Russia has engineered as a pretext for this further violation of Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, nor their falsified and illegal results. We will never recognise this illegal annexation. These decisions are null and void and cannot produce any legal effect whatsoever. Crimea, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk are Ukraine. We call on all States and international organisations to unequivocally reject this illegal annexation.
In the face of Russia's war of aggression as well as Moscow's latest escalation, the European Union stands resolutely with Ukraine and its people. We are unwavering in our support to Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. Ukraine is exercising its legitimate right to defend itself against the Russian aggression to regain full control of its territory and has the right to liberate occupied territories within its internationally recognised borders. The nuclear threats made by the Kremlin, the military mobilisation and the strategy of seeking to falsely present Ukraine's territory as Russia's and purporting that the war may now be taking place on Russia's territory will not shake our resolve.
We will strengthen our restrictive measures countering Russia's illegal actions. They will further increase pressure on Russia to end its war of aggression.
We reiterate that the European Union firmly stands with Ukraine and will continue to provide strong economic, military, social and financial support to Ukraine for as long as it takes.
Politics
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The mother of the arrested head of the human rights organization "Protection Line" Rufat Safarov, Tahira Tahirgizi, has been banned from leaving Azerbaijan.
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The Tbilisi Court of Appeal has scheduled a hearing on January 15 for the appeal of Afgan Sadygov, the head of the Azerbaijani website Azel.TV, against the decision to extradite him to Baku.
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The black boxes of the Azerbaijani Embraer aircraft that crashed in Kazakhstan last week are currently being analyzed in Brasília as part of an international initiative to pinpoint the cause of the crash that claimed 38 lives, O Globo reported on January 2. The Brazilian Air Force announced that the ongoing investigation, involving three Brazilian investigators along with representatives from Azerbaijan and Russia, does not yet have a specified completion date, but authorities are hopeful for rapid results.
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The investigation into the crash of the AZAL plane near Grozny on December 25 remains partially classified, the Telegram channel VChK-OGPU reported on Saturday. In particular, the "military part" of the investigation, which concerns the actions of the military, has been classified. It has become known that the crash of the AZAL plane has been kept secret in Grozny. According to reports, all investigative actions with military personnel are being carried out by local military investigators.
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