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Largest delegation of foreign journalists visits Crimea, says Russian senator

The delegation consisted of journalists from European Union member states, African and Asian countries

MOSCOW, November 15. /TASS/. A delegation of foreign journalists, the largest in the past five years, visited Crimea on November 12-14, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council (the upper house of parliament) Foreign Affairs Committee Andrei Klimov said at a press conference.

The delegation consisted of journalists from European Union member states, African and Asian countries, including Italy, France, Portugal, India, Vietnam, Kenya and South Africa. The delegation’s members met with Crimean officials and also had a chance to look into the Crimean Peninsula’s history and culture.

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Allmost 6.9 million people visited Crimea since early 2019

"In the five years that passed since the referendum, this is the largest delegation of foreign reporters to visit Crimea," Klimov said. "Our goal was to create conditions for their work so that they can draw their own conclusions and tell their people what things are like here," he added.

The delegation’s members pointed out they haven’t seen numerous troops that Western media outlets write about. "I haven’t seen tanks, and I wasn’t looking for them," a Serbian journalist said. "People live a normal life. There are very nice tourist locations here," she added.

Crimean head Sergei Aksynov said at a meeting with the delegation on Wednesday that he would present a case of Crimean sparkling wine to any journalist who would find a tank on the streets of Crimean cities.

Crimean reunification

After Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich was ousted in a coup in February 2014, mass protests erupted in Crimea and eastern Ukraine. On March 11, 2014, Crimea’s Supreme Council and Sevastopol City Council adopted a declaration of independence.

On March 16, 2014, Crimean authorities held a referendum on reuniting with Russia. Over 80% of voters participated in the plebiscite, most of them supporting the idea (96.7% in Crimea and 95.6% in the city of Sevastopol).

On March 18, President Vladimir Putin signed the treaty on Crimea’s reunification with Russia and the Federal Assembly (parliament) approved the document on March 21.

Following Crimea’s reunification with Russia, a number of countries imposed sanctions on Moscow.

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