Zakharova called Ukraine’s initiative “populism” and “a political spectacle divorced from reality.”
“At the same time, as we warned, we will be forced to view the participation of individual countries, international organizations and their representatives in the Crimean platform as an encroachment on the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, which will inevitably have a corresponding impact on our relations,” said the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Context:
Russia annexed Crimea after illegal referendum on March 16, 2014… The accession of the peninsula to the Russian Federation is not recognized by Ukraine and most countries of the world.
The Crimean Platform is a new consultative and coordination format initiated by Ukraine to improve the effectiveness of the international response to the occupation of Crimea, increase pressure on Russia, prevent human rights violations and protect victims of the occupation regime. The main goal of the platform is the de-occupation of Crimea. It is assumed that the platform will operate at several levels: heads of state and government, foreign ministers, in the dimension of inter-parliamentary cooperation, in the format of an expert network.
Officially the activity of the Crimean platform started at the inaugural summit on 23 August 2021 year. In him 46 delegations took part.
At the summit adopted a declaration Crimean platform, which condemns Russia’s policy towards the occupied Crimea. She open for signature other countries, noted the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky.
He also invited the Russian Federation to join to the initiative of the Ukrainian authorities. The Russian Foreign Ministry replied that Moscow “does not see an opportunity for itself to participate” in the Crimean platform.
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