Erdogan’s Position on Crimea Unable to Alter Status of Peninsula

The Russian senator Alexey Pushkov said on Monday that the status of the Crimean Peninsula is inalterable, as Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his support for the Ukrainian integrity during a meeting with Petro Poroshenko earlier in the day.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The status of Crimea does not depend on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's refusal to recognize the peninsula's decision to rejoin Russia, member of the upper house of the Russian parliament Alexey Pushkov said.

“Whether Erdogan recognizes the Russian sovereignty over Crimea or not, that will not change the status of Crimea. He knows that and just pleases Poroshenko,” Pushkov wrote on his Twitter page on Monday.

Earlier in the day, Erdogan met with his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko. During the meeting the Turkish leader said that Ankara supported the Ukrainian territorial integrity and did not recognize the “illegal annexation” of Crimea.

Ukraine and Turkey signed on Monday a number of cooperation agreements, including an action plan for development of bilateral relations for 2017-2019, the press service of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said.

In March 2014, after the overthrown of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych the Crimean peninsula voted in a referendum to secede from Ukraine and rejoin Russia, in a move that has not been recognized as legitimate by the United States, the European Union, Turkey and other countries.

Moscow has repeatedly stressed that Crimean residents took the decision on the reunification with Russia democratically, in full compliance with international law and the UN Charter.