Russia on Wednesday celebrated the one-year anniversary of its annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine with an open-air concert in the center of Moscow, where the crowds were addressed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin said the Russian people had shown “amazing patriotism” by supporting the annexation of Crimea, which Moscow regards as a “historical return.”
Putin’s personal approval rating has reached record levels in the past year, despite the Crimea move leading to a worsening of relations with the West and the implementation of sanctions.
Photo: Reuters
“We understood that in terms of Crimea it was not a matter of just some territory, however strategically important it is,” Putin told the crowd. “It was a matter of millions of Russian people, our compatriots, who needed our help and support.”
A year after the annexation, Putin admitted in a documentary aired on Sunday that Russian soldiers were involved in a well-planned operation to take Crimea.
At the time, the Kremlin said that it merely responded to a local grassroots movement.
Russian television has been instrumental in promoting the new “patriotic” mood, and the head of a major state news agency, Dmitry Kiselev, said in a documentary that the anniversary should be a “celebration for all Russians.”
Putin had shown “tremendous sincerity” and should serve as an example for all world leaders, he said.
Meanwhile, as Russia celebrated one annexation, it appeared to pave the way for another.
South Ossetian leader Leonid Tibilov on Wednesday signed an “alliance and integration” treaty with Russia in the Kremlin.
The treaty integrates the security services, the military, the economy and border guards of South Ossetia with those of Russia.
Western leaders condemned the agreement, saying it violated Georgia’s sovereignty and international law.
Russia has run both South Ossetia and Abkhazia as protectorates after it recognized them as independent states following a brief war with Georgia in 2008.
“This so-called treaty is yet another move by the Russian Federation that hampers ongoing efforts by the international community to strengthen security and stability in the region,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement.
In another incident, NATO jets intercepted eight Russian fighter jets and three transport planes in international waters over the Baltic Sea on Wednesday, the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense said.
“Civil aviation over the Baltic Sea was endangered because of the secretive way the airplanes flew,” a Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense spokesperson said.
Russia has resumed these flights in recent months, including an incident when British Royal Air Force jets were scrambled to intercept two Russian jets off the coast of Cornwall last month.
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