On Tuesday, October 6, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission Vice President Josep Borrell met in Brussels to host the 22nd Ukraine-EU Summit. The meeting participants emphasized that they continue to condemn the illegal occupation of Crimea and called on the Russian Federation to release all Ukrainian political prisoners, including Crimean Tatar activists.
“We reaffirmed our strong condemnation of the apparent violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine as a result of acts of aggression by the Russian armed forces, starting in February 2014. We continue to condemn the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by Russia, the militarization of the peninsula, the serious deterioration of the human rights situation on the peninsula, and restriction of freedom of movement of Ukrainian citizens to and from the Crimean Peninsula”,- the statement said.
The summit called on Russia to ensure unhindered access for international organizations and human rights defenders to areas not currently under Ukrainian control, including the Crimean peninsula, and to respect international humanitarian law.
“We called for the immediate release of all illegally detained and imprisoned citizens of Ukraine on the Crimean Peninsula and in Russia, including Crimean Tatar activists. We continue to call on Russia to ensure unhindered and free passage to and from the Sea of Azov in accordance with international law”,- the document added.