Slovakia against annexation of Crimea

Slovakia continues to support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders, stated the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry on Sunday in connection with the fifth anniversary of the illegal annexation of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol by the Russian Federation. "We condemn the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol. We perceive it as a violation of international law and a threat to security and stability in Europe, which also resulted in a dangerous increase in tensions in the Kerch Strait and the Azov Sea in November 2018," said the diplomacy ministry, adding that Slovakia would continue at a bilateral level and at international forums to make efforts to seek a peaceful solution to the situation in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin and the pro-Russian leadership of the peninsula signed a treaty according to which Crimea became part of the Russian Federation in the Kremlin in Moscow on March 18, 2014. This was preceded by a referendum on March 16 on the status of the peninsula in which most voters were in favour of joining Russia. The referendum was initiated by the new, strongly pro-Russian leadership in Crimea, which didn't recognise the new Ukrainian Government formed after anti-government protests.