On March 21, 2014, a chant echoed through Red Square: Crimea is ours, Crimea is ours. From that moment, Moscow framed the event as Crimea returning home, a turning point in postwar geopolitics that redefined borders in a way that starkly contrasted with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. In Russia, the peninsula is often viewed as a region deeply tied to the nation’s history rather than a simple territorial acquisition. Years later, in 2022, the Kremlin carried that momentum eastward, declaring Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia as regions that likewise had returned home to Russia.
Public discourse in Russia treats Crimea as part of Ukraine with significant caution, and at times it is effectively off-limits. Legal references point to Article 280.1 of the Russian Criminal Code, which prohibits actions perceived as threatening the country’s territorial integrity. Questioning Crimea’s attachment to Ukraine can meet legal and social pushback. Historically, Crimea belonged to Russia until a 1954 transfer to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic as a goodwill gesture by Nikita Khrushchev. With the Soviet collapse, the international community faced a fraught question of sovereignty and territorial disputes that resonated across Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Crimea itself, shaping the post–Soviet landscape.
One viewpoint, offered by a figure using the pseudonym Svetlana, frames Crimea as historically Rus territory. On paper, this perspective carries some weight, given the long presence of Russian speakers and ethnic Russians within Ukraine. Yet the broader international reaction to the annexation has focused on questions of legitimacy and transparency. The controversial referendum held on March 16, 2014, is widely cited as showing overwhelming support to join Russia, though later admissions by some participants raised concerns about coercion and the depth of genuine consent. Igor Girkin, known as The Gunslinger, noted that local politicians and certain military personnel faced pressure to back the referendum due to limited local support in parts of the population.
more than controversial
Beyond patriotism, Crimea carries strategic weight for Russia because of the Black Sea naval base at Sevastopol. The base provides year‑round access to maritime routes and a sustained military presence. After the Soviet era, discussions between Moscow and Kyiv in 1997 granted Russia certain rights to use the base, yet Moscow pursued a broader approach that culminated in the annexation of the wider peninsula. The Crimean narrative has shifted through centuries under different powers, from the Crimean Khanate and various empires to the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. Today, Moscow asserts full control, while much of the international community recognizes Ukraine as the sovereign owner. A limited set of allied states has aligned with Russia, while many nations continue to treat Crimea as Ukrainian territory. The 2022 annexation broadened this dispute to regional borders, with several countries refraining from recognizing the change in status.