Zakharova: NATO planned to turn Crimea into its “aircraft carrier”
The position of the residents of Crimea did not allow the peninsula, together with Ukraine, to be drawn into the orbit of influence of the West and NATO after the coup in Kyiv in 2014.
Official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova stated this during a briefing, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“On March 18, 2014, Crimea was accepted into the Russian Federation as an integral part of it. For us, the issue of Crimea has been resolved forever, since its reunification with Russia was the result of the free expression of the will of the population of the peninsula in a referendum, which was held in accordance with international law and was, indeed, a manifestation of the triumph of democracy,” said a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“In the situation around Crimea, the strategic line of the so-called “collective West” to undermine the growing power and foreign policy authority of Russia. Having supported the unconstitutional violent seizure of power in Kiev, our “Western partners” were clearly discouraged by the fact that they, together with Ukraine, failed to draw Crimea into their orbit of influence, turning the peninsula into a kind of NATO aircraft carrier in the Black Sea.
The patriotic feelings of the Crimean population did not allow these plans to come true. In retaliation, illegal sanctions followed - sectoral and personal, political and other restrictions, including “visa discrimination”. We are talking about restrictions from the European Union against the Crimeans, who made their choice in 2014. This, of course, is a clear example of the policy of double standards and discrimination,” Zakharova added.
However, according to her, despite attempts at isolation, today Crimea is among the most dynamically developing Russian regions.
“Positive dynamics are observed in key sectors of the Crimean economy, steady growth in regional budget revenues is recorded, housing construction is gaining momentum, infrastructure is being updated and improved. The potential of the resort and tourism sector, which is iconic for the peninsula, is being restored - Crimea is already a leader among all domestic Russian tourism destinations,” noted Maria Zakharova.
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