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Europe simply canceled story of coup in Ukraine — Lavrov

The Russian Foreign Minister says in the eyes of the Europeans it all started with the "annexation" of Crimea by Russia

ST. PETERSBURG, June 5. /TASS/. The Europeans simply canceled part of the story of the coup in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Izvestia at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"We are accused of having ‘annexed’ Crimea in 2014, and back then, while still talking to Europe, we drew their attention to the fact that this was preceded by a coup. And on the second day, the putschists immediately announced their intention to revoke the status of the Russian language and sent armed militants to storm the Supreme Council of Crimea. And in response, the Crimeans held a referendum. This part of the story has been canceled by the Europeans," the minister said.

Lavrov pointed out that in their eyes it all started with the alleged "annexation" of Crimea by Russia. "Similarly, [in their opinion], there was no attack on South Ossetia, and Russia simply 'occupied' parts of Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. And they are still proceeding from this," he added.

The SPIEF will be held from 3 to 6 June. The main theme is "Pragmatic Dialogue: the Path to a Stable Future." The forum's program is devoted to the formation of a new model of global development in the context of the transformation of the global economy.

The forum is organized by the Roscongress Foundation. TASS is the general information partner.