Ukrainian commander-in-chief rules out military operation in Crimea, Donbass
In turn, Alexey Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said the issue of Crimea was still on table
Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny has assured that Kiev was not planning a military operation in Crimea or Donbass.
“No orders or discussions about a military operation in Crimea and Donbass have been held,” he told the One Plus One television channel on Thursday.
In turn, Alexey Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said the issue of Crimea was still on table.
“We will do everything to make Crimea, as well as Donbass, to return. How will we do that? Everything depends on us,” he said.
However, Danilov ruled out the military scenario for Crimea at this point.
“Do we have the strategy of returning Crimea by military means? Well, for the time being, we just have a strategy of returning Crimea. Whether it will be done militarily or in some other way depends on numerous factors. But this is impossible at present. We’ll see whether it will become possible tomorrow, or maybe one year later. It’s not that simple,” he said.
The Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, a city with a special status on the Crimean Peninsula, where most residents are Russian, refused to recognize the legitimacy of authorities brought to 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 96.7% of Crimeans and 95.6% of Sevastopol voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join the Russian Federation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the reunification treaties on March 18, 2014. The documents were ratified by Russia’s Federal Assembly, or bicameral parliament, on March 21.
Despite the overwhelming results of the referendum, Ukraine still refuses to recognize Crimea as part of Russia.
