54
votes
Accepted
How can EU/USA consider Russian presidential elections legitimate if non-Russian citizens in Crimea will be able to take part in them?
First of all, there's a difference between recognizing that Crimea is a Russian territory and recognizing that Crimean residents are Russian citizens. Taking up the Russian citizenship was voluntary ...
- 51.2k
37
votes
Why did Crimea’s parliament agree to join Ukraine in 1991?
The quoted text and the Wikipage page you linked to do not seem to agree on the meaning of the referendum, and the book (and your question) are definitely wrong on "Crimea joining Ukraine" ...
- 1,834
24
votes
Why doesn't Russia recognize Kosovo if it uses the Kosovo precedent to justify annexing Crimea?
The Crimean declaration of independence is to the benefit of Russia.
The Kosovan declaration of independence is to the detriment of Russia's ally, Serbia.
So Russia chooses to recognise the former, ...
- 124k
22
votes
How can EU/USA consider Russian presidential elections legitimate if non-Russian citizens in Crimea will be able to take part in them?
You are asking a loaded question because I can predict what the outcome is.
If Russia denies the Crimeans to vote, then the EU/USA will vilify Russia because it suppresses the opinion of the Crimeans ...
- 4,712
19
votes
Why do Crimeans think so differently of Russia compared to the people of Donetsk/Luhansk?
It is somewhat unfair to use so-called "Ukraine public opinion" from Wikipedia — because it is the fact, that creates such a gap for you.
Real opinions of people are well described by that ...
- 11.8k
16
votes
Why doesn't Russia recognize Kosovo if it uses the Kosovo precedent to justify annexing Crimea?
Western intervention against Yugoslavia left international law in tatters.
West of course broke international law many times before or after that (Libya, Iraq, Syria etc ...) but this was ...
- 3,421
15
votes
Why did Crimea’s parliament agree to join Ukraine in 1991?
Autonomous_Soviet_Socialist_Republics (ASSRs) belong to Soviet Republics (SSRs). There is no precedent that I know of that an ASSR would be a top-level entity within USSR.
So what they've voted in is ...
- 18k
14
votes
Have anti-Ukraine-war parties in Russia explained what their preferred end state looks like?
A. Navalny said on February 24, 2022:
The war with Ukraine has been unleashed to cover up the robbery of Russian citizens and divert their attention away from the country’s internal problems, from ...
- 23.1k
14
votes
Accepted
Who caused the Ukraine crisis, according to Putin?
Disclaimer (it is sooo difficult right now to have a real discussion concerning Russia): Do not call me a Russian troll - you want to know what Putin thinks, so I try explain what he thinks as I see ...
- 556
13
votes
Why would the Russian Annexation of Crimea be illegal?
Aside from the reasons listed in other answers, the annexation violated at least two treaties Russia agreed to honor:
The Helsinki accords from 1975 forbids any non-consensual border changes in ...
- 3,813
13
votes
Accepted
How many Ukrainian language schools were still open in Crimea in 2021 compared to 2013?
The website Zmina.info provides the numbers you are looking for. Translation is courtesy of Google Translate:
According to the Ministry of Education of Ukraine, at the time of the occupation, 208,536 ...
- 51.2k
13
votes
Why did Crimea’s parliament agree to join Ukraine in 1991?
The 1991 referendum was definitely an independence referendum. As the Wikipedia article on it says:
The referendum did not just call for the restoration for the ASSR, but
further called for Crimea to ...
- 3,281
12
votes
How can EU/USA consider Russian presidential elections legitimate if non-Russian citizens in Crimea will be able to take part in them?
Short version: neither the US or the EU rule the world.
Long version: Legitimate is either an internal legal question, or an external political statement.
Internally, it only matters if there is ...
- 3,244
10
votes
Did Putin admit to giving the order to send the "little green men" into Crimea in an interview?
The BBC also has an article on that documentary. Barring any translation errors, what Putin said was a less obvious admission of the methods, at least those prior to the events...:
Mr Putin said on ...
9
votes
Why do Crimeans think so differently of Russia compared to the people of Donetsk/Luhansk?
The quoted source talks about people on free and recently liberated territories of Donbas who know the war and who don't want the invaders to come to their land.
The people of free regions can speak ...
- 17.4k
8
votes
Accepted
Did some UNGA resolutions recognize Crimea as independent or part of Russia? Or Kosovo as part of Serbia, to this day?
Kosovo
On February 17th 2008 Kosovo declared its independence. On October 8th of the same year, the General Assembly requested an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice whether that ...
- 9,313
7
votes
Accepted
What would NATO's obligations have been if HMS Defender had been attacked near Crimea?
It would probably be open to interpretation and action would depend on what the UK did, what Russia did and how good a case the UK could make. This is because HMS Defender was not obviously operating ...
- 92.8k
7
votes
Why doesn't Russia recognize Kosovo if it uses the Kosovo precedent to justify annexing Crimea?
In your question there is a false assumption that Russia in some way recognized the legitimacy of the declaration of independence of Kosovo. However, it's not the case. Your quote is the statement ...
- 731
7
votes
Did any group in Russia oppose Crimean annexation?
Yes, there were plenty such groups within the Russian opposition. The largest of those is the Yabloko party. Their presidential candidate in 2018 stated that:
Any form of forceful intervention in ...
- 51.2k
6
votes
How could it happen that Ukrainian soldiers did not try to defend against the invasion?
There is a good joke from that time:
Russian troops in Crimea: Surrender! We surrounded your base.
Crimean Ukrainian troops: Russians never surrender!
PS: Most of the Ukrainian Crimean army just ...
- 169
6
votes
Accepted
What's lacking about the Kerch Strait land bridge, between Crimea and Russia?
The bridge is easily sufficient for combat vehicles themselves.
Russian tanks weigh 46-48 mt (a very narrow range all of them fit into). Trucks are generally limited to 80,000 lbs, or 36 mt. It's not ...
- 6,745
6
votes
Why did Crimea’s parliament agree to join Ukraine in 1991?
The other two answer already hint at that but maybe one should mention the distinction explicitly:
Apparently the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) is a union of Soviet Socialist Republics (...
- 7,906
5
votes
Why would the international sanctions against Russia after invading Ukraine in 2022 work while sanctions after the 2014 Crimea crisis didn't work?
By now, it is obvious that the 2022 sanctions against Russia are having multiple negative effects on specific individuals (oligarchs, Russian ruling elite) and on the economy of the Russian Federation ...
- 12.6k
5
votes
Accepted
Did any group in Russia oppose Crimean annexation?
Were they political groups or non-political groups?
Both. Yabloko were perhaps the largest official political party that openly opposed the annexation. Ilya Ponomarev(from the Just Russia party) was ...
- 316
5
votes
How many Ukrainian language schools were still open in Crimea in 2021 compared to 2013?
So, in September, the new 2022/2023 academic year began in Ukrainian
for 190 people, 175 of whom were in the Ukrainian—speaking school No.
20 of Feodosia (nine grades) and 15 people in the 9th "U&...
- 18k
4
votes
Accepted
Why was the Kerch strait bridge built along a long route?
Apparently, because the shorter route would interfere with the shipping lane.
Although you can't exactly rule out the possibility that corruption plays a role; the bridge has been built by SGM group, ...
- 5,494
4
votes
How could it happen that Ukrainian soldiers did not try to defend against the invasion?
Maybe the soldiers were already all russian ethnic or crimeans?
This. Most of population of Crimea including soldiers are Russian ethnics + Russia had military bases in Crimea (like US all over the ...
- 175
3
votes
How objectively do Western and Russian media report about the Ukraine crisis in 2015?
Some thoughts on this:
Information warfare (IW) is now an integral part of modern warfare. As such, it is naivety to believe that media sources can be truly independent and neutral when there is ...
- 10.9k
3
votes
Who caused the Ukraine crisis, according to Putin?
In one of his interviews Putin stated that it was done because of geopolitics because Black Sea front is important. I think he believes it and this was the real reason because anti-Russian rhetoric in ...
- 175
2
votes
Are there regions within Russia with a majority population that is not ethnic Russian?
Suppose in 70 years the EU falls apart, and suppose that at the moment of separation each person is automatically assigned the citizenship of the country where he or she resides at the moment.
In my ...
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