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Crimea and Sevastopol

Crimea’s authorities invite UN delegation to assess human rights and apologize

Deputy Parliament Speaker Efim Fix also called the UN GA voting for a resolution "without knowing the essence of the issue" shameful

© Alexey Pavlishak/TASS

SIMFEROPOL, December 23. /TASS/. Representatives of countries, which backed Ukraine’s resolution at the United Nations on alleged human rights violations in Crimea, should first visit the region and apologize for the earlier claims, First Deputy Parliament Speaker Efim Fix told TASS on Sunday.

"You should set up a commission and let it come to Crimea. They can visit any settlements they wish and no one will create any programs," Fix said. "It’s a shame that the countries vote for a resolution without knowing the essence of the issue. If they don’t see any human rights violations, they should come to Lenin Square in Simferopol (the central square in the Crimean capital) and apologize before the crowd for those excesses they commit jointly with Ukraine," he stressed.

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Russian senator sees ‘sobering trend’ in UNGA vote on Crimean resolution

The UN General Assembly on Saturday passed the Ukrainian resolution condemning alleged human rights violations in Crimea and "illegal establishment of laws, jurisdiction and administration" in the region. The UNGA’s fifth committee in charge of economic issues has refused to allocate funds to implement this decision.

The document, suggested by Kiev, was backed by 67 delegations this year, or five fewer than in 2017. Among those who supported the resolution were the United States, the European Union member-states, Turkey and Japan. Some 27 delegations voted against the document, including Russia, Belarus, China, India, Serbia, Syria, the Republic of South Africa, Nicaragua and Venezuela, while 70 countries abstained.

The Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, a city with a special status on the Crimean Peninsula, where most residents are Russians, refused to recognize the legitimacy of the authorities in Kiev who seized power amid riots during a coup in Ukraine in February 2014.

Crimea and Sevastopol adopted declarations of independence on March 11, 2014. They held a referendum on March 16, 2014, in which 96.77% of Crimeans and 95.6% of Sevastopol voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join Russia. The Russian president signed the reunification deals on March 18, 2014. Despite the convincing results of the referendum, Kiev refused to recognize Crimea as part of Russia.

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Crimea and Sevastopol Ukraine United Nations

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