Asking for It: Rogue Crimean Tatar Leaders Deliberately Antagonize Russia

The so called Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People is deliberately attempting to get all of its activities in Russia banned in order to secure funding from foreign sponsors, according to a Crimean government official.

"The Mejlis' leaders are consistent in their actions and do their utmost to make sure that their group gets banned in Russian Federation," said Zaur Smirnov, head of the State Committee for International Relations and Deported Citizens of the Republic of Crimea.

He pointed out that the group's leaders are actively cooperating with Ukrainian extremist groups banned in Russia, such as the notorious Right Sector, and that they also call for the creation of a "Crimea" paramilitary battalion to be used as a vanguard for a possible invasion of the peninsula.

Smirnov also added that Mejlis was the chief instigator of the ongoing food blockade of Crimea by Ukrainian radicals, and that the group also seeks to completely cut off the power supply to the region.

At the same time, residents of Crimea, including the Crimean Tatars, do not display any sign of interest towards the Mejlis, he added.

"The leaders of Mejlis realize that they've lost all of their ties to the Crimea, so now they want to gain some sort of "government in exile" status, hoping to gain more dividends this way, mostly from various Western foundations," Smirnov said.

The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People is a movement not officially registered in Russia. Its nominal leader is Refat Chubarov, a successor to Mustafa Dzhemilev. Both politicians vehemently oppose Crimea’s reunification with Russia.