Christian Estrosi is a member of the opposition center-right party of the Republicans party, led by former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. He has repeatedly expressed his support for the Russian Federation and criticized the reluctance of French authorities to supply the Mistral warships to France. The French embassy has not yet reacted to Estrosi's statements, which contradict the official position of the French government, the EU, and UN. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian ambassador to France Oleg Samshur has sent a letter in which he condemned the visit of the "so-called 'mayor' of Yalta." The letter, sent on 2 March 2016, stresses that Mr.Estrosi "should know that that the annexation of Crimea is condemned by the international community as a flagrant violation of international law and fundamental principles of European security, that France is in the avant-garde of the diplomatic efforts to support the Ukrainian sovereignty, that the representatives of the occupation authorities are under sanctions, and that the occupation has given rise to massive violation of human rights particularly those of Crimean Tatars. It underlines that, as Mr.Estrosi is an experienced politician, it is clear that this was a deliberate initiative that goes against the position of the international community, of France and democratic values, and that the presence of the ambassedor of Russia, the occupant county at the this meeting is even more striking. The letter requests him to clarify publicly if he supports the annexation of Crimea, in violation of international law. https://www.facebook.com/ambassadeukraineenfrance/photos/a.268302533338084.1073741829.267715046730166/545013899000278/?type=3 In February 2014, unmarked Russian soldiers occupied Ukrainian territory and initiated the takeover of government buildings in the Crimean peninsula. On 16 March 2014, a so-called “referendum” was held in Crimea, following which the territory was attached to Russia. On 24 March 2014, 100 countries, including France, adopted the UN Resolution 68/262 that affirms the territorial integrity of Ukraine. After Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea, the self-proclaimed authorities had engaged in numerous repressions against its indigenous population, the Crimean Tatars, which some commentators have called a “hybrid genocide.”Rencontre avec A.Rostenko, maire de Yalta, pour signer lettre d'intention visant rvllmt jumelage e/ #Nice06 et Yalta pic.twitter.com/R3UQw4xxsx
— Christian Estrosi (@cestrosi) February 29, 2016
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