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Zelenskiy Declares Feb. 26 Memorial Day to Mark Russia's Seizure of Crimea

RFE/RL

   Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has issued a decree designating
   February 26 a memorial day to mark the seizure of Ukraine's Crimea
   region by Russia in 2014.

   Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula in March 2014 after sending in
   troops and staging a referendum deemed illegitimate by at least 100
   countries. In April that year, Russia threw its support behind armed
   separatists in eastern Ukraine, where more than 13,000 people have been
   killed in the ongoing conflict.

   Zelenskiy designated Feb. 26 Day of Resistance to the Occupation of
   Crimea and Sevastopol, as on that day in 2014 Ukrainians held the
   largest protest in Crimea's capital, Simferopol, against Russia's
   intervention in the peninsula following the toppling of Ukraine's
   Moscow-backed President Viktor Yanukovych, Zelenskiy's office said in a
   statement.

   Zelenskiy also said the return of Crimea to Ukraine was not only his
   goal as the country's leader, but also his personal standpoint as a
   Ukrainian citizen.

   Zelenskiy said Ukraine had the backing of the international community
   in its fight to bring Crimea back.

   "And we know that this day is sure to come," he was quoted as saying.

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