In a recent development, Russian lawmakers have introduced a draft bill to the State Duma that aims to overturn the Soviet decision made in 1954 to transfer Crimea from Russia to Ukraine. This move is seen as an attempt to create a legal argument for Russia’s claim that Crimea, the peninsula on the Black Sea which it annexed from Ukraine in 2014, was never truly part of Ukraine.
The draft bill, put forward by a legislator from each of Russia’s parliamentary chambers, labels the 1954 transfer as unlawful and arbitrary because no referendum was conducted, and Soviet authorities did not have the authority to transfer territory between constituent republics without consent.
It has not been disclosed when the bill will be discussed by lawmakers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticized the 1954 transfer of Crimea by then Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev as a breach of legal norms at the time.
When the Soviet Union dissolved, Crimea residents voted for independence along with the rest of Ukraine in a referendum, and both Russia and Ukraine acknowledged each other’s borders. However, in 2014, Moscow took control of Crimea militarily and annexed it following a referendum that was deemed illegal by Ukraine and Western nations.
Using Crimea as a base, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has since declared its annexation of four other Ukrainian regions. Ukraine has carried out numerous attacks on Russian targets in Crimea and is determined to reclaim all territory occupied by Russia.
(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Peter Graff)
