Ukraine plans to invite Russia to Crimean platform – Dzheppar

Ukraine will invite the Russian Federation to the events of the International Crimean Platform for the de-occupation of the peninsula, but there is a doubt that Moscow will accept this invitation.

First Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Emine Dzheppar said this at an online briefing on Monday, October 5, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“We made a decision that the Russian Federation will be invited to participate in the events of the Crimean platform; however, given the uncivilized behavior of the Russian Federation, we do not expect it to accept our invitation,” Dzheppar noted.

She also informed that within the framework of the Crimean platform, the Crimean summit should be a key event. At the moment, several dates for its holding are being discussed, including February 26, 2021 - the Day of Crimea's Resistance to Russian Aggression. However, the first deputy minister stressed that it is difficult to plan something due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dzheppar recalled that the Crimean platform should cover several dimensions: the highest political level, which consists of the leaders of the countries, top public officials; the level of foreign and defense ministers; parliamentary level; and expert level.

The key task of the Crimean platform is to advocate for the Crimean issue at the highest international level. At the same time, this cannot be done without the participation of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people and the leaders of this people.

On September 23, President Volodymyr Zelensky presented the concept of the International Crimean Platform to the UN and invited international partners to join the initiative for de-occupation of the peninsula.

As reported, the Ukrainian side announced the initiative to create the International Crimean Platform in June this year. The main attention was paid to the protection of human rights in the occupied Crimea, the release of persons illegally detained by the Russian Federation, as well as the creation of a format for international negotiations on the "inevitable de-occupation" of the Ukrainian peninsula.

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