Crimean Tatars: Mustafa Dhzemilev Warns EP of Russian Nuclear Arms in Crimea
Photo Courtesy of the Kyiv Post
The leader of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, Mustafa Dhzemilev, told the European Parliament that Russia has brought nuclear weapons to the Crimean Peninsula, which it illegally annexed in 2014. Dhzemilev also mentioned that Crimea is now turning into a Russian military base, with approximately 70,000 soldiers being stationed there. He pointed out that this makes it impossible to liberate Crimea through military means, thus suggesting an imposition of tough sanctions or other diplomatic channels as a more viable solution. He went on to shed a light on the unbearable repression faced by the Crimean Tatars, specifically targeted due to their refusal to accept the occupation.
Below is an article published by the Kyiv Post:
Leader of the Crimean Tatar people MP Mustafa Dhzemilev has said in the European Parliament that Russia has brought nuclear weapons to the occupied Crimea, while pushing the Crimean Tatars out of the peninsula, according to the Ukrainian Mission to the European Union.
“According to our data, nuclear weapons have been brought to the peninsula. Information services of Mejlis have information that six nuclear warheads have been brought in,” a report published on Tuesday evening by the Ukrainian Mission to the EU on Facebook quotes Dhzemilev as saying.
In his words, the Russia-occupied Crimea “has turned into a military base.”
“According to our counter-intelligence, there are about 70,000 soldiers, including the FSB and the police,” the leader of the Crimean Tatars said.
Dhzemilev also said there is no way to liberate Crimea through military means. “We think that the liberation of Crimea is possible only through diplomatic channels, through pressure on the aggressor. One of the main tools is tough sanctions. As you know, after the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, severe sanctions were applied, which led to its disintegration. We hope the sanctions applied to the aggressor would lead to the liberation of the occupied territories,” the MP said.
In addition, Dhzemilev noted that the Russian authorities have liquidated all democratic freedoms and established a Soviet-like regime in Crimea. “People live in fear, grassing is thriving. There is special treatment of Crimean Tatars, because they clearly said they do not accept the occupation.” About 95 percent of repressions perpetrated on the occupied peninsula are aimed against Crimean Tatars, he said.
