Putin Says 'Crimean Spring' Showed Russia Can Protect Its Own Interests

The events of 2014 when Crimea joined Russia, dubbed "the Crimean Spring," showed to the whole world that Russia can protect its own interests, President Vladimir Putin said on Monday as the region marks the fifth anniversary of reunification with Russia

SIMFEROPOL (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th March, 2019) The events of 2014 when Crimea joined Russia, dubbed "the Crimean Spring," showed to the whole world that Russia can protect its own interests, President Vladimir Putin said on Monday as the region marks the fifth anniversary of reunification with Russia.

"This [Crimean Spring] is a new milestone in the Russian history because it ... showed to the the whole world that Russia can love itself and protect its own interests. And [in this case] we go ahead with interests of our own people. This is the most fundamental issue," Putin stressed when asked what the Crimean Spring and the events of 2014 when Crimea joined Russia mean for him.

The Russian leader was speaking with an audience from Crimea and Sevastopol, a city with a special Federal status on the peninsula.

Crimea and Sevastopol held a referendum in March 2014 following a change of power in Kiev which the peninsula viewed as a coup. The decision to reunite with Russia was backed by roughly 97 percent of voters.

Five years later, the results of the vote and Crimea's subsequent reunification are still viewed by Kiev authorities and the West as illegitimate. The West insists that Crimea "was annexed" by Russia and keeps on imposing rounds of sanctions on Russia under various pretexts. Moscow, however, stresses that the Crimean vote was held in accordance with the international law.