Five years ago, on 27 March 2019, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 68/262 “Territorial Integrity of Ukraine”.

By way of the resolution, the international community in response to the naked Russian aggression affirmed its full commitment to the sovereignty, political independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

The United Nations General Assembly underscored that the so-called “referendum” held on 16 March 2014, having no validity, cannot form the basis for any alteration of the status of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea or of the city of Sevastopol. The General Assembly called upon all States, international organizations and specialized agencies not to recognize any alteration of the status of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol on the basis of the above-mentioned “referendum”.

Despite the sanctions imposed in response to Russian actions and the clear demands of the international community, the Russian Federation has not abandoned its occupation of Crimea. On the contrary, continuing blatant violations of basic human rights in Crimea and the militarization of the peninsula have become the tip of an iceberg of Russia’s ongoing massive campaign of breaches of norms and principles of international law enshrined in the UN Charter, international humanitarian, maritime and human rights law.

These brazen actions of the Russian Federation prompted the General Assembly to adopt resolutions 71/205, 72/190, 73/263 “Situation of human rights in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine” and 73/194 “Problem of the militarization of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine, as well as parts of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov”.

In these resolutions, the General Assembly condemned the temporary occupation of Crimea and urged the Russian Federation, as the occupying power, to uphold all its obligations under applicable international law.

Yet again, Ukraine urges the Russian Federation to end its occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol and fully comply with the provisions of the mentioned UN General Assembly resolutions.

Ukraine will continue to take all necessary steps under international law to counter Russian aggression, protect the rights of Ukrainian citizens, restore its territorial integrity and ensure that Russia makes full reparation for the injury caused by its internationally wrongful acts.