UWC is reminiscent of the day of the crime resistance

On February 26, the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) in solidarity with Ukraine in memory of the day of the Crime Resistance against the Russian occupation. We honor the brave people of the Crimea, who bravely protested the illegal annexation of the crime pennies by Russian armed forces in 2014.

We also appreciate members of the Crimean resistance who today continue their underground fight against the Russian occupiers. The Ukrainians worldwide inspire their commitment and bravery in defending the integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. It serves the international community as a resounding memory that the Crimea is an integral part of Ukraine and will always be.

Eleven years ago, when the world experienced the dramatic events of the revolution of dignity in Kyiv, Russia started a hidden invasion and occupation of the Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

On February 26, 2014, up to 15,000 Crimean tatars and Ukrainians gathered in front of the parliament of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea to thwart Putin's illegal plan. The next day, severely armed Russian saboteurs, which are often referred to as “small green men”, confiscated the parliament and the government buildings of the Crimea to unleash the annexation scenario. This was the first armed invasion to have changed the borders of Europe since World War II.

Over the entire occupation years, Russia has transformed the Crimea into a significant military base that used it in 2022 to start a complete invasion of Ukraine. The Russian armed forces have committed widespread human rights violations and have to rely on the Crimean tatar and the Ukrainian communities based on ethnicity, faith and language. The international community clearly sentenced Russia to its reprehensible acts of the kidnapped Ukrainian children, ethnic cleansing and the establishment of indoctrination camps in the Crimea.

Despite these challenges, the Ukrainians remain in their conviction that the Crimea has to return to Ukraine, just like any other Ukrainian area under Russian occupation. Under no circumstances decide the Russian occupation of the Crimea.

Together with the international democratic community, the UWC supports and strengthens the voices of those who fight for their rights and for the future of a free, sovereign and independent Ukraine.

Fame of Ukraine! Fame the crime resistance fighter!