Russian President Putin: No Discussion On Ceding Crimea Back To Ukraine

TASS: Putin says Russia will indulge in no discussion on ceding Crimea back to Ukraine

It was a historic decision of people living in Crimea," Russian President said

ATHENS, May 27. /TASS/. Russia will indulge in no discussion with anyone on ceding Crimea back to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday.

"As for Crimea, we think this issue closed once and for all. It was a historic decision of people living in Crimea," he said at a news conference after his talks with the Greek leaders.

"Russia will indulge in no discussions with anyone on that matter," Putin stressed. "So, let us stop raising this matter over and over again."

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 authorities brought to power amid riots during a coup in Ukraine in February 2014.

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Update: Putin says Crimea's status as part of Russia not up for discussion (Reuters)

WNU Editor: When I was last in Crimea (admittedly a long time ago) .... there was (maybe) 5% support for Crimea becoming a part of Russia (and I am being very generous in this estimate). Before the Maidan revolution in 2014 .... this 5% support was probably the same. After the Maidan revolution .... with anti-Russian language/cultural measures being passed by the new Ukraine government .... many people in Crimea were still afraid of succeeding from Ukraine but support had quickly grown to about 50% .... this personal analysis comes from my Ukrainian friends, family, social media, and my gut feelings. When the referendum was held .... I would say that a massive majority did favour succeeding from Ukraine .... but it was also "fixed and forced". And while I did criticized the referendum .... why fix it when you are getting the result you wanted .... for those who do not know or understand Russian/Ukrainian/Crimean politics .... this is actually normal behaviour. Today .... if a vote was held ... it would not need to be fixed (and the Russian-Crimean authorities know that) .... 90% (if not more) would favour staying with Russia.

But Crimea is a huge political problem for everyone .... for Ukraine, Russia, Europe, and for those who live in Crimea. It is the main reason why sanctions are being enforced, and one of many reasons why tensions have increased between Russia and the West. The problem is that I do not see an end-game to this crisis. The Crimeans do not want to be a part of Ukraine any-more .... they are linguistically and culturally Russian .... not Ukrainian. For Ukrainian nationalists .... this is a rallying point .... and they are not going to give up their claims on Crimea. My prediction .... this is an issue that is going to be on the table for a very long time .... and a sore point for generations to come.