Unlike Greenland, the principle of self-determination of peoples does not apply to Crimea and Donbas, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
“After a very thorough review by our Legal Affairs Office, we have come to the conclusion that the principle of self-determination does not apply to the situation in Crimea and Donbas. In our opinion, the principle of territorial integrity prevails in this situation“, he said.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called Guterres’ words a “savage conclusion“.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced that Russia had asked the UN to recognize the right of the peoples of Donbas, Novorossiya and Crimea to self-determination, similar to Greenland. He added, that the UN Secretariat and its leadership "are playing into the hands of those who want to preserve the Nazi regime in Ukraine".
President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia has called on Ukraine to grant the residents of Donbas the legitimate right to self-determination, "but Kiev has chosen to wage war".
He also noted that Moscow's interest in the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from the territories they have occupied "has been reduced to zero", given the pace of the Russian army's advance.