Crimea's fate crucial for Ukraine's future, says Tatar leader

Refat Chubarov, chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, emphasized in a conversation with the Polish Press Agency that ceding Crimea to Russia would threaten Ukraine's future and lead to the annihilation of the Crimean Tatar nation. Chubarov highlighted the persecution of ethnic Ukrainians who do not recognize the Russian occupation.

Repression and persecution continue in Crimea. At least 227 people are deprived of freedom, most of whom have already been sentenced. They are brought before occupational courts in distant regions of Russia, attempting to separate them from their relatives and lawyers, highlighted the leader of the Crimean Tatars.

In March, in Eupatoria, four family members were arrested and accused of collaborating with Ukrainian special services. Russia uses repression to "break the will" of Crimea's inhabitants and force them to leave the peninsula.

Since 2014, Russia has relocated nearly one million of its citizens to Crimea, which "dramatically changes the ethnic composition of the residents." Chubarov emphasizes that the loss of Crimea would mean losing strategic Black Sea routes and be detrimental to Ukraine's economic and military security.

If any politician considers ceding Crimea, they should be aware that they are giving Putin the authority to completely destroy the Crimean Tatar people. What Catherine II and Stalin failed to achieve, Putin will complete. For us, further control of our land by Russia means that they will ultimately deal with us - he warned.

Chubarov cautions that ceding Crimea would give Putin "a licence to destroy the Crimean Tatar people." He reminds that Russia has not changed its demands since the beginning of the invasion in 2022, and any concessions to Russia may lead to chaos worldwide. - And there will no longer be the rule of law, but the law of force — he added.