UNITED NATIONS, January 29. /TASS/. The UN Secretariat has come to the conclusion that the principle of self-determination does not apply to Crimea and Donbass, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at a press conference.

"After a very careful study by our Office of Legal Affairs, it is our position that the principle of self-determination does not apply in the situations of Crimea and Donbass. So in that situation, the principle that prevails is the principle of territorial integrity," he noted in response to a TASS question.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pointed out earlier that Crimea, Donbass and Novorossiya had reunited with Russia through referendums based on the principles approved by the UN General Assembly.

The Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, joined Russia based on referendums held in the four regions on September 23-27, 2022. An overwhelming majority of local residents voted in favor of joining Russia. On September 30, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the DPR and the LPR, the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions signed treaties on their joining Russia. On October 4, 2022, the Putin signed laws ratifying the four regions’ accession to the Russian Federation. Crimea and the city of Sevastopol reunited with Russia following a March 2014 referendum. The West and Ukraine did not recognize the outcome of the plebiscite.