Eskender Bariiev participated in the dialog panel dedicated to the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea

On Tuesday, February 25, 2025, a dialog panel “AR Crimea vs ‘island of Crimea’” dedicated to the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol was held in the online format. The event was organized by the Department of Education and Science of the Donetsk Regional State Administration in cooperation with the Donetsk Regional Institute of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education.

The participants of the event were: Deputy Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in Crimea Denis Chistikov, Chairman of the Board of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center, member of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people Eskender Bariiev, Acting Head of the Department of Management and Administration of Donetsk Regional Institute of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education Alexander Batiukov.

About 300 educators joined the discussion, including deputy principals for educational work, teachers, lecturers, pedagogical staff and high school students.

The discussion covered key topics: the international legal assessment of the occupation of Crimea, the resistance of the Crimean Tatar people, and contemporary challenges associated with the temporary occupation.

Alexander Batyukov presented an analysis of the events of 2014, the illegality of the Russian Federation’s actions and international support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

Denis Chistikov noted the importance of keeping the issue of Crimea on the international agenda. He also spoke about the vision for the restoration of Crimea after liberation, emphasizing that Ukraine is already working on reintegration plans. He also drew attention to the specifics of Crimea, which must be taken into account – the presence of indigenous peoples: Crimean Tatars, Karaites and Krymchaks. According to him, the Russian Federation is carrying out a targeted work on their destruction, trying to completely assimilate them.

Eskender Bariiev, in turn, spoke about the events of 2014, as a direct participant of all these processes, noting that one of the first organizations that supported the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine was the representative body of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people – Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people.

In addition, the Chairman of the Board of the CTRC during his speech told about:

The chart “Victims of the occupation of Crimea” developed by the CTRC – visual statistics on the number of political prisoners and those prosecuted in criminal cases, killed and missing during the occupation period of the peninsula.

A clickable chart of the CTRC “Persons Violating Human Rights in Crimea”, which collects information on people who are directly involved in offenses on the peninsula.

CTRC criteria for defining political prisoners – this category includes individuals who lived in Crimea, had a connection with the peninsula, were detained there or their case directly relates to Crimea.

International civil movement for the de-occupation of Crimea and solidarity with the Crimean Tatar people #LIBERATECRIMEA.
Test materials and posters prepared by the CTRC for the Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea as part of the #LIBERATECRIMEA information campaign.
He noted that the issue of Crimea should be supported in various ways, in particular through information campaigns.

Eskender Bariiev also outlined a vision of Crimea’s future, emphasizing that the peninsula is not just the sea, but a unique part of Ukrainian culture and history.

“Our experts have developed a model of the future of Crimea, which consists of the following points: Positive Ukrainianization of Crimea; Guaranteed protection of human rights in Crimea; Realization of collective rights of indigenous peoples of Ukraine; Autonomous Republic of Crimea is a national-territorial autonomy of the Crimean Tatar people; Crimea is an economically developed and a touristic attractive region of Ukraine,” – he explained.

The expert emphasized that every day of the occupation works against Ukraine, and without the liberation of Crimea it is impossible to return other temporarily occupied territories. The war began in Crimea and must end there.

You can watch the video of the discussion here.