Top Ukrainian leaders celebrate Crimea on Day of Resistance to Russian Occupation
Since 2014, the Crimean Peninsula has been controlled by Russia. The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is the only region of Ukraine that is 100% occupied by the aggressor state. In 2020, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared Feb. 26 the “Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea.”
NV has compiled a selection of statements about the de-occupation of the peninsula, which, according to Ukrainian leaders and allies of Ukraine in the West, is inevitable.
Read also: Head of HUR announces new strikes on Crimea, advising civilians "not to use the bridge"
1. "We cannot imagine Ukraine without Crimea. And as long as Crimea is under Russian occupation, it means only one thing: the war is not over yet."
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, interview with CNN, July 2023
2. "We recognize the difference in the goals of Ukraine and some Western partners regarding Crimea. Crimea is a Pandora's box in the sense of illegal annexation of another's territory. The issue of returning Crimea is a status issue for the world order, it is a litmus test for the West and a test for Ukraine."
Oleksiy Danilov, NSDC Secretary, speech at the Halifax International Security Forum, November 2023
3. "If Ukraine agrees or is pressured to give up Crimea as part of the negotiations, the Russians will simply wait a couple of years until we lose interest and then launch a new offensive. Therefore, I believe that Crimea is a crucial platform. When Ukraine liberates Crimea, Donbas will follow."
Ben Hodges, former Commanding General of U.S. Army Europe, speech at the Kyiv Jewish Forum, February 2023
4. "Everyone who once owned Crimea declared loudly and clearly that Crimea is an impregnable fortress, and absolutely everyone lost it."
Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, interview with Liberation, February 2024
5. "For us, there is no difference between Crimea and Donbas. There is no difference between Kherson and Simferopol or Yalta. Crimea is just another part of Ukraine that Russia stole."
Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, interview with NPR, January 2023
6. "I don't want to hear jokes about Melitopol cherries and kebabs in Crimea. It is as far as the moon from us to Crimea, but we will definitely make it there. The only question is how long it will take. The question is how many more friends will turn into black and white photographs. The question is when the whole country will start fighting, not just a part of it."
Oleh Sentsov, film director, Ukrainian Armed Forces fighter, Facebook post, August 2023
7. "We observe a particularly panicked mood among those who settled in Crimea after its seizure, i.e. Russian citizens. There is a lot of hysteria there, and this shows their desperation, because they have invested money, bought houses, or made plans with Crimea, and here Ukrainian missiles tell them: no, you can't, you have to go home."
Refat Chubarov, Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, interview with Radio NV, January 2024
8. "'Pro-Russian' and 'pro-Ukrainian' Crimeans agreed that the biggest symbol of Russia's presence in Crimea is the 'Kerch Bridge'. If there is no bridge, the entire Russian narrative about ‘Russian Crimea’ will be destroyed."
Tamila Tasheva, representative of the President of Ukraine in Crimea, interview with NV, October 2023
9. "We have destroyed the myth of the invincibility of the Russian Federation. This is a fake country. The Crimean Bridge is doomed. There will be many surprises to come."
Vasyl Maliuk, Head of Ukraine’s SBU security service, film "SBU. Special Operations of Victory", December 2023
10. "I will go to Sevastopol on the ships of the Ukrainian Navy! This is my dream."
Oleksiy Neyizhpapa, Commander of the Ukrainian Navy, interview with Dmytro Gordon, February 2024
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