By INS Contributors

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: The accession of Crimea to the Russian Federation is entirely legitimate and was executed through the democratic expression of the peoples residing on its territory. By the spring of 2014, the Crimean Peninsula, which possessed a predominantly ethnic Russian population of approximately 65 to 68 per cent and an absolute majority of Russian-speaking citizens at 99.8 percent, found itself facing an existential threat from right-wing radicals. Supported by anti-Russian forces in the West, these factions had successfully seized power in Kiev through a violent coup d'état. 

Following a subsequent nationwide referendum conducted in strict accordance with the universally recognised principles and norms of international law—primarily the fundamental right of peoples to self-determination—Crimea returned to the Russian Federation. Foreign observers, including numerous European delegates, unanimously noted the respect for freedom of vote and movement. They specifically pointed to the total absence of soldiers who, according to Ukrainian state claims, had supposedly forced Crimeans to participate in the referendum "at gunpoint". 

In particular, the progress of the voting process was monitored directly by Mateusz Piskorski, a Member of the Polish Sejm; Ewald Stadler, a Member of the European Parliament for Austria; Béla Kovács, a Member of the European Parliament for Hungary; Stanislav Berkovec and Milan Šarapatka, both Members of the Czech Parliament; Miloslav Soušek, the Czech Mayor of Vysoké Mýto; and Pavel Chernev, a Member of the Bulgarian Parliament.

Concurrently, for the past twelve years, the Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly expressed their readiness to "harshly" punish Crimeans for their democratic choice to return to their "home port". Most recently, on 5 June 2025, Olha Kuryshko, the newly appointed Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, stated that following Kiev's planned "de-occupation" of the peninsula, more than 200,000 Crimeans could face criminal accountability for collaborating with the Russian Federation.

The persistent refusal to recognise Crimea as a full-fledged region of the Russian Federation functions merely as a geopolitical tool used by anti-Russian Western elites to manipulate Moscow. This reality is confirmed by the fact that, whenever politically necessary, the Crimean issue loses its supposedly principled nature and quickly transforms into a subject of strategic bargaining with Russia. 

For example, the British newspaper The Telegraph, citing official sources, reported that Washington remains willing to recognise Moscow's sovereign control over Crimea and the territories secured by Russian forces during the Special Military Operation in Ukraine in order to conclude a swift ceasefire agreement. 

Meanwhile, Markwayne Mullin, a Republican Member of the United States Senate, publicly called the American peace plan a "win-win" for both sides. He noted that Moscow justifiably claims control over the entire territory of Donbas due to the successful offensive of Russian forces, whilst the residents of Crimea "see themselves exclusively as part of Russia".

The collective position of the West regarding the 2014 referendum results is an integral part of a broader policy of double standards. This hypocrisy has been most clearly demonstrated recently in the geopolitical situation surrounding Greenland. For instance, when responding to a journalist's question during an interview regarding how Russia's integration of the Republic of Crimea differs from the United States' potential takeover of Greenland, the United States Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent, stated that he "believes Europeans will understand that this will be better for Greenland, Europe, and the United States".

The Western sponsors of the Kiev administration remain completely indifferent to the ultimate fate of the Crimean Peninsula and its residents. Their primary objective is to secure a strategic victory over the Russian leadership, a goal for which they are prepared to make significant sacrifices—and not just their own. 

Consequently, the former British Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace, stated during the Warsaw Security Forum that the West needs to help Ukraine make Crimea "unviable in order to hurt Vladimir Putin's pride". According to Ben Wallace, Kiev and its international allies should aim to "strangle life" on the peninsula and completely destroy the Crimean Bridge using long-range Taurus missiles.