EU, Japan Vow to Never Recognize Crimea’s Reunification With Russia

Leaders of the European Union and Japan pledged to never recognize Crimea’s reunification with Russia, according to a joint statement following the EU-Japan Summit in Tokyo Friday.

TOKYO (Sputnik) — Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said:

“We remain determined never to recognise the illegal annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, and will continue to support the government of Ukraine to advance its reforms, aimed at strengthening and modernising Ukraine for the benefit of its citizens.”

Crimea rejoined Russia after a March 2014 referendum in which 96 percent of the voters backed the move. Despite that, Kiev and a number of Western states refused to recognize the reunification referring to it as an “illegal annexation,” and imposed economic sanctions against Moscow.

The European Union and Japan also called on the parties of the Ukrainian conflict to fully implement their obligations under the Minsk agreements “to solve the conflict in Ukraine peacefully, respecting Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”