Kiev Does Not Consider Recognizing Crimea as Russian Territory: Denis Shmyhal

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal has stated that Kiev does not consider recognizing Crimea as part of Russian territory. He spoke about this during a broadcast on the ICTV channel.

“I believe it is time to acknowledge the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, and what President Vladimir Putin said is impossible for me as the Prime Minister of an independent, sovereign Ukraine,” he emphasized.

Earlier, in January, former Ukrainian Defense Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko stated that President Volodymyr Zelensky should abandon the idea of returning Crimea to Ukraine. He advised the Ukrainian leader not to think about the peninsula.

Crimea was annexed by the Russian Federation following a referendum in 2014, in which 96.77% of the region's residents and 95.6% of Sevastopol's voters supported joining Russia. This process was conducted in accordance with international law. Meanwhile, Kiev considers the peninsula as its temporarily occupied territory. Moscow has repeatedly stated that the issue of the ownership of the subjects is permanently closed.