MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin marked the fifth anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine by visiting the Black Sea peninsula on Monday, as NATO and the European Union once again strongly condemned the land grab.
Putin began his trip by attending the launch of new power plants in Crimea, part of Moscow’s efforts to upgrade the region’s infrastructure. Ukraine has cut off energy supplies to the peninsula and blocked shipments of Crimea-bound cargo via its territory after Moscow annexed the region in 2014.
“The situation has changed radically,” Putin said, adding that the new power facilities will fully cover Crimea’s needs.
Russia’s modernization effort has included the construction of a 11.8-mile bridge which opened last year across the Kerch Strait that links the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. The $3.6-billion project gave Crimea a land link to Russia. Previously, a ferry crossing that was often interrupted by gales served as the only connection.
Russia has also beefed up its military presence in Crimea with new navy ships, missiles and warplanes. Viktor Bondarev, the head of the Russian upper house’s defense affairs committee, said the new weapons included the Iskander-M missiles and the Tu-22M3 long-range bombers.
Moscow’s annexation of Crimea drew U.S. and EU sanctions against Russia that hurt its economy.
NATO allies said in a statement Monday that “we strongly condemn this act, which we do not and will not recognize.” They also criticized Russia’s military buildup in Crimea and alleged rights abuses including “arbitrary detentions, arrest, and torture” against members of the Crimean Tartar community.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry protested Putin’s visit to Crimea as a “violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Putin claims that Russia “re-integrated” Crimea after the ouster of Ukraine’s former pro-Russian president in 2014 to protect ethnic Russians who made up the majority of Crimea’s population from Ukrainian nationalists.
