site.btaAmbassador Baltazhy: Ukraine Hopes to Have Crimea Back
NW 18:40:01 14-03-2018
LN1838NW.125
125 - POLITICS - CRIMEA - CONFERENCE - SOFIA
Ambassador Baltazhy:
Ukraine Hopes to
Have Crimea Back
Sofia, March 14 (BTA) - A conference on Crimea was held in Sofia by the European Council on Foreign Policy and the Ukrainian Embassy. Prompted by the fourth anniversary of the occupation of Crimea, it brought together diplomats, politicians and political analysts for a discussion on possible solutions to the crisis.
Ukrainian Ambassador in Sofia Mykola Baltazhy reiterated that the only way to resolve the issue is through peace and one of the steps is de-occupation. "We hope that ultimately Crimea will go back to Ukraine. By then we expect that the Russian Federation will learn to talk to its neighbours: not in the language of special operations but respecting their sovereignty and independence."
Refat Chubarov, the leader of the Crimean Tatars, said that Russia is turning Crimea into a bridgehead for NATO's southern flank and has deployed there state-of-the-art missile complexes and aircraft. He also said that it is driving away from Crimea the people it does not need, starting with the Tatars, and is changing the ethnic makeup of the population in Crimea.
He spoke in favour of stepping up the sanctions against Russia.
Chubarov said that the Tatars will boycott the upcoming presidential elections in Crimea and will call on all people there to follow suit.
Political analyst Ognyan Minchev said that the invasion and occupation of Crimea has helped consolidate the Ukrainian nation. He said that the occupation soured relations between East and West, worsened the living standards of Russians and resulted in militarization of the Black Sea and geo-political rivalry. On the other side of the scales is Russia's come-back as a major factor in the Black Sea region - but it does not weigh as much, he said. "I am in favour of maintaining good relations with Russia but aren't we also interested in improving our relations with Ukraine?" Minchev asked.
Political analyst Daniel Smilov said the Crimea situation seemed easy to him from the view point of international law: there is a violation of key principles, and when there is a violation there needs to be sanction and some kind of reaction. He said that Kosovo is a false analogy (because of the broader support it enjoys), as is Catalonia (because Spain is dealing with this issue peacefully and on its own).
Deputy Prime Minister Valeri Simeonov, another participant in the discussion, shares this view. When there is an act of aggression and violation of international law, the democratic states should stand united against these rather than be guided by bilateral economic interests - with Russia in this case, he said. "If such acts [of aggression] remain unpunished, who knows who will be next! One day it is Ukraine, the other some other country and then nothing will be left of the fragile stability in Europe and the world," he also said.
Simeonov said that he was speaking as the leader of the power-sharing National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria and a politician - not as Deputy Prime Minister.
He also said that Bulgaria is much committed to helping address the problems of the Bulgarian community in Ukraine. He mentioned several visits by representatives of the executive branch of power and commended steps taken by Vice President Iliana Iotova. LN/
//
LN1838NW.125
125 - POLITICS - CRIMEA - CONFERENCE - SOFIA
Ambassador Baltazhy:
Ukraine Hopes to
Have Crimea Back
Sofia, March 14 (BTA) - A conference on Crimea was held in Sofia by the European Council on Foreign Policy and the Ukrainian Embassy. Prompted by the fourth anniversary of the occupation of Crimea, it brought together diplomats, politicians and political analysts for a discussion on possible solutions to the crisis.
Ukrainian Ambassador in Sofia Mykola Baltazhy reiterated that the only way to resolve the issue is through peace and one of the steps is de-occupation. "We hope that ultimately Crimea will go back to Ukraine. By then we expect that the Russian Federation will learn to talk to its neighbours: not in the language of special operations but respecting their sovereignty and independence."
Refat Chubarov, the leader of the Crimean Tatars, said that Russia is turning Crimea into a bridgehead for NATO's southern flank and has deployed there state-of-the-art missile complexes and aircraft. He also said that it is driving away from Crimea the people it does not need, starting with the Tatars, and is changing the ethnic makeup of the population in Crimea.
He spoke in favour of stepping up the sanctions against Russia.
Chubarov said that the Tatars will boycott the upcoming presidential elections in Crimea and will call on all people there to follow suit.
Political analyst Ognyan Minchev said that the invasion and occupation of Crimea has helped consolidate the Ukrainian nation. He said that the occupation soured relations between East and West, worsened the living standards of Russians and resulted in militarization of the Black Sea and geo-political rivalry. On the other side of the scales is Russia's come-back as a major factor in the Black Sea region - but it does not weigh as much, he said. "I am in favour of maintaining good relations with Russia but aren't we also interested in improving our relations with Ukraine?" Minchev asked.
Political analyst Daniel Smilov said the Crimea situation seemed easy to him from the view point of international law: there is a violation of key principles, and when there is a violation there needs to be sanction and some kind of reaction. He said that Kosovo is a false analogy (because of the broader support it enjoys), as is Catalonia (because Spain is dealing with this issue peacefully and on its own).
Deputy Prime Minister Valeri Simeonov, another participant in the discussion, shares this view. When there is an act of aggression and violation of international law, the democratic states should stand united against these rather than be guided by bilateral economic interests - with Russia in this case, he said. "If such acts [of aggression] remain unpunished, who knows who will be next! One day it is Ukraine, the other some other country and then nothing will be left of the fragile stability in Europe and the world," he also said.
Simeonov said that he was speaking as the leader of the power-sharing National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria and a politician - not as Deputy Prime Minister.
He also said that Bulgaria is much committed to helping address the problems of the Bulgarian community in Ukraine. He mentioned several visits by representatives of the executive branch of power and commended steps taken by Vice President Iliana Iotova. LN/
//
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