Referendum or popular consultation

Crimea referendum and annexation, 2014

Russia annexed Crimea following an unauthorized referendum held under Russian military control, a move the UN General Assembly declared invalid days later.

What happened

On 16 March 2014, a referendum was held in Crimea and Sevastopol while Russian forces controlled the peninsula; the administering authorities announced majority support for accession to Russia. On 17 March 2014, the Crimean legislature declared independence and requested admission to the Russian Federation.[1] On 18 March 2014, Russia signed a treaty purporting to annex Crimea and Sevastopol.[2]

On 27 March 2014, UN General Assembly Resolution 68/262 affirmed Ukraine's territorial integrity, declared the referendum invalid as a basis for altering Crimea's or Sevastopol's status, and called on all states not to recognize any such altered status; the resolution was adopted with a reported 100 states in favour, 11 against and 58 abstaining.[3][4]

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

  1. 1.

    Claim: On 16 March 2014, a referendum was held in Crimea and Sevastopol while Russian forces controlled the peninsula (widely referred to as the "little green men" deployment in sources outside the scope of this bundle's citations); the administering authorities announced majority support for accession to Russia. On 17 March 2014, the Crimean legislature declared independence as the "Republic of Crimea" and requested admission to the Russian Federation.

    • 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea (Wikipedia) link, Referendum and declaration section. Source record
  2. 2.

    Claim: On 18 March 2014, Russia signed a treaty purporting to annex Crimea and Sevastopol into the Russian Federation.

    • 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea (Wikipedia) link, Annexation treaty section. Source record
  3. 3.

    Claim: On 27 March 2014, UN General Assembly Resolution 68/262 affirmed its commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty, political independence, unity and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders; noted that the 16 March 2014 referendum was not authorized by Ukraine; declared that referendum invalid as a basis for altering Crimea's or Sevastopol's status; and called on all states, international organizations and specialized agencies not to recognize any such altered status.

    • United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly Resolution 68/262: Territorial integrity of Ukraine (United Nations) link, Preamble and operative paragraphs 1, 5 and 6. Source record
  4. 4.

    Claim: Resolution 68/262 was adopted with a reported 100 states in favour, 11 against, 58 abstaining and 24 absent.

Source note

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