An executive body representing Crimea’s Tatar minority has vowed to oppose any international recognition of the Moscow-occupied Ukrainian peninsula as part of Russia.
The development comes amid reports that the U.S. has pitched Ukraine a peace formula that includes, among other elements, ruling out NATO membership for the country while giving formal American recognition of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Crimea has been under Russian occupation since 2014. Moscow illegally annexed the territory following a sham referendum held under military occupation and without international observers.
On Tuesday, the Mejlis, one of the formal bodies representing the Crimean Tatar people, said that any move to recognize Crimea as Russian would violate international Law.
Refat Chubarov, the body’s chairman, said in a statement: “Crimea is the homeland of the indigenous Crimean Tatar people and an integral part of Ukraine.
“Accordingly, no one can decide the fate of Crimea under any circumstances, except for the Ukrainian state and the Crimean Tatar people.”
Historically the majority on the peninsula prior to Russia’s conquest in 1783, Tatars now make up 15% of the Crimean population.
Kyiv is expected to respond to the latest U.S. proposal during a meeting with American and European officials in London on Wednesday.
The proposal comes amid mounting frustration in Washington, with Donald Trump’s efforts to end the three-year-long war yet to yield results.
The U.S. recently threatened to abandon its efforts to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine if the two warring sides fail to make any meaningful progress toward peace in the coming days.