The head of the Crimean inter-ethnic mission Zaur Smirnov called "courageous" the words of the adviser of the newly elected US President Donald Trump about the refusal to support actions for the return of the peninsula to Ukraine.
Previously, Trump senior adviser and Republican Party strategist Brian Lanza said that the US, under the new administration of Donald Trump, who won the presidential election, would not support Kiev in its desire to “take Crimea back”, as it is an unrealistic position since the peninsula has been lost to Ukraine. According to him, the US priority is “peace and the end of bloodshed” and called for “honest dialogue”. In turn, ag. Reuters, citing an unnamed Republican staff member, said Lanza's statement was not made on behalf of Trump.
„ Zelensky's wishes never had a real basis. Trump was the first to commit to acknowledging this fact. There is no doubt that Western leaders will also express a similar opinion after this, Smirnov told RIA Novosti.
At the same time, according to him, the collective West, led by the USA, will first of all protect its geopolitical and economic interests as much as possible, including sacrificing Ukraine.
Crimea became a Russian region in March 2014 as a result of a referendum following the coup in Ukraine. In the referendum, 96.77% of voters in Crimea and 95.6% in Sevastopol voted in favor of joining Russia. Ukraine still considers Crimea as its temporarily occupied territory, many Western countries support Kiev on this issue. For its part, the Russian leadership has repeatedly stated that the residents of Crimea voted for unification with Russia democratically, in full accordance with international law and the UN Charter. According to the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, the issue of Crimea" closed completely."