Russians have prioritized the accession of Crimea over Gagarin’s space-flight and Russia’s role in the cosmic exploration when naming events which their country can proudly boast of.
According to the latest survey by Levada Center, 43% of respondents are proud of the annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula. 83% of them feel pride in the victory over Nazi Germany.
But there are also those who are ashamed of what happened three years ago. For example, a dozen Russian citizens protest against the occupation of Crimea near the Russian Embassy in Warsaw and demanded it be returned to Ukraine.
For the last three years, more than 20,000 Crimean Tatars left the peninsula. Over 30 representatives of national minorities are still behind bars. At the same time, the Russian authorities continue to put pressure on those who have not dashes away. Last week, law enforcement officers arrested ten Tatars who were filming the search at activist Marlene Mustafayev’s place in Simferopol.
The rallies to mark the third anniversary of the Kremlin’s annexation of Crimea have been lately held in Warsaw, Kyiv, Kherson, Ankara, Paris and other cities. So, on February 26, the day of resistance to the Russian occupation, activists from NGO Global Ukraine organised the solidarity action ‘Crimea Is Ukraine’ near the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Watch also: Crimean Trap (in English), report by Belsat TV
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