Berlin will never put up with annexation of Crimea – German govt

German Government Spokesperson Steffen Seibert said this on the occasion of the 7th anniversary of the illegal annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“With this annexation, Russia violated the fundamental principles of international law and called into question the post-war peace order in Europe,” Seibert said.

Germany, the EU, and the international community do not recognize the annexation of the Ukrainian region with a population of over 2 million, the spokesman recalled. The German government calls on the Russian leadership to adhere to the principles of respect for human rights, release all political prisoners, and restore Ukraine’s sovereignty over this territory.

Seibert stressed that the results of the so-called referendum "have no legal force", because it was held in violation of the Constitution of Ukraine and international law, including due to the illegal presence of Russian troops.

"The fact that this illegal state of affairs has been going on for seven years is not a reason for the federal government to put up with it," the spokesperson said.

As a reminder, the unilateral illegal annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol to the Russian Federation as subjects of the federation – the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol – was declared by the Russian Federation on March 18, 2014 based on the results of the so-called referendum on the status of Crimea held on March 16, 2014.

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