Six years have now passed since Russia attempted to make lawful their armed aggression against Ukraine and the military occupation of the Crimean peninsula, by holding an illegal, fake referendum on the status of Crimea.

The so-called referendum grossly violated the Constitution of Ukraine, the fundamental principles of international law and bilateral agreements.

The international community regards the actions of Moscow as completely illegal and the legal status of the so-called referendum as null and void.

Crimea is, and will continue to be, the sovereign territory of Ukraine.

The Consolidated position of the international community and decisions of key international organisations, including the UN, EU, NATO, Council of Europe, UNESCO, and international parliamentary organisations make it clear that the world will never agree with the annexation of Crimea de jure or de facto.

The occupant’s desire to consolidate their control over the illegally seized territory has dramatically worsened the situation on the peninsula, where human rights and freedoms are systematically violated, and political persecution is carried out both on religious and ethnic grounds.

Active militarisation is turning the peninsula into a powerful military base that threatens the security of Ukraine, the Black Sea region and Eastern Europe as a whole.

On the day of this sad anniversary, we express our support to all who continue to suffer from the authoritarian regime and occupation.

Ukraine calls on the international community to increase its further political, diplomatic and economic pressure on Moscow in order to liberate Crimea as soon as possible. Restoring peace and stability in Europe is impossible without ending Russian aggression.