You're reading: Rasmussen: NATO does not recognize elections in Crimea

Brussels – NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said that NATO does not recognize the elections held in Crimea on Sep. 14.

“NATO does not recognize the reported elections held on Sep. 14 in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukraine,” reads the statement of the secretary general posted on the official Web site of the organization.

“We continue to condemn Russia’s illegal and illegitimate ‘annexation’ of Crimea and its continued and deliberate destabilization of eastern Ukraine in violation of international law,” the statement reads.

NATO calls on Russia to reverse its illegal and illegitimate annexation of Crimea, which the alliance does not and will not recognize, reads the statement.

“We stand united in our support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders,” Rasmussen said.