DISINFO: Crimeans voted to join Russia in a democratic manner and according to international laws
SUMMARY
Crimea became Russian in 2014 following a popular referendum after the coup in Ukraine. In the referendum, 96.77% of voters in Crimea and 95.6% in Sevastopol supported becoming part of Russia. Kyiv still considers Crimea a temporarily occupied territory, and Western countries support Ukraine in this position. For its part, the Russian leadership has repeatedly stated that the Crimean people voted in favour of reunification with Russia in a democratic manner, in full accordance with international laws and the UN Charter.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the illegal annexation of Crimea. The article also advanced a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative depicting the 2013-14 protests in Kyiv as a coup d’état.
In 2014, Russian troops forcefully obliged the parliament of Crimea to organise a referendum, which was illegitimate under international law and then illegally annexed the peninsula and brought it under Russian territorial control. The annexation has been condemned by the UN, stating that the referendum in Crimea was not valid and could not serve as a basis for any change in the status of the peninsula.
Following the covert invasion by ''little green men,' the referendum in Crimea was conducted hastily and at gunpoint, barring impartial observers from entering the peninsula.
A year after the illegal annexation, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted that the plan to annex Crimea was ordered weeks before the so-called referendum.
No international body has recognised the so-called referendum, which was organised by a self-proclaimed Crimean leadership lacking democratic legitimacy and installed by armed Russian military personnel following the seizure of public buildings. The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has stated that “the situation within the territory of Crimea and Sevastopol amounts to an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. This international armed conflict began at the latest on 26 February 2014 when the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of the Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government."
On 17 December 2018, the UN General Assembly confirmed its non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea. The EU's policy of non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol includes a set of restrictive measures against entities and individuals responsible for actions against Ukraine's territorial integrity. Read more about the EU's policy towards Crimea here, and see also our infographic that presents numerous pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives covering the illegal annexation.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that Crimea was legitimately reunited with Russia after a referendum in 2014, that ten years ago, Crimea reunified with Russia after a referendum, that Russia saved Crimea 10 years ago, that Crimea and Sevastopol are an integral part of Russia, that Ukraine sold Crimea to the West, or that the annexation of Crimea brought peace and prosperity to this region.