Canadian PM affirms Crimea’s status as part of Ukraine on anniversary of sham referendum

On the 10th anniversary of Russia's sham "referendum" to "legalize" its occupation of Crimea, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reiterated that Ottawa has not and will not recognize the annexation of the peninsula, the Canadian government's press service reported.

16 March marks the 10th anniversary of when the Kremlin authorities held an illegal referendum on the territory of the Crimean peninsula, which led to the annexation of the peninsula by the Russian Federation. Many Russian military units, without any insignia on their uniforms but hostile, were deployed to the territory of Crimea.

The Kremlin-controlled "referendum" was not recognized by most democratic countries of the world and Ukraine itself, as it violated all norms of international law. As a result, a number of sanctions were imposed on Russia, but Crimea is still under occupation to this day.

"Ten years ago, Vladimir Putin ordered his troops into Ukraine, a free and sovereign country," Trudeau said in the statement. He condemned Russia's "brutal and illegal campaign" to try to annex Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula.

Trudeau said that Russia's hybrid invasion of the peninsula was more than just aggression against Ukraine, as the Kremlin's actions challenged the international legal order.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the oppression against Crimean residents, "particularly against the Crimean Tatars," following Russia's occupation.

"Today is a reminder that Russia’s war against Ukraine did not start on 24 February 2022 – it started a decade ago," Trudeau said. "As Putin still tries to redraw the map as he pleases, we remain unequivocally clear: Ukraine’s territory will remain Ukraine’s, and we will stand with Ukrainians for as long as it takes."

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