DISINFO: Crimea became part of Russia after a referendum held after the coup
SUMMARY
Crimea became part of Russia again in March 2014 after a referendum held after the coup in Kiev. 96.77 percent of the voters of the Republic of Crimea and 95.6 percent of the residents of Sevastopol voted in favour of unification with Russia. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the issue of Crimea is closed.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the Euromaidan claiming that there was a coup d’état and that that Crimean citizens chose to re-join Russia through a legal referendum. Euromaidan demonstrations which began in Kyiv in November 2013 and ended in February 2014 was not a coup d’état but was the a result of the Ukrainian people's frustration with former President Yanukovych who refused to sign the EU–Ukraine Association Agreement promised for year. No international body recognises the so-called referendum and held on 16th of March 2014. On the 27th of February 2014, when it was announced, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution which stated that the referendum in Crimea was not valid and could not serve as a basis for any change in the status of the peninsula. A year after the illegal annexation, even the Kremlin admitted that the plan to annex Crimea was ordered weeks before the so-called referendum.