Visit to Crimea by Russian leadership is Russia’s internal affair (Russian FM)

Visits to Crimea by the Russian leadership are Russia’s internal affair, and Moscow is perplexed over Ukraine’s demarche in response to such a visit, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

"We have sent Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry a response note in which we expressed our perplexity over Kiev’s demarche and reminded the Ukrainian side that the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol are an integral part of the Russian Federation, which are fully covered by its sovereignty and where Russian laws are effective," the ministry said in a statement.

"Visits by Russian officials to the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol are the Russian Federation’s purely internal affair," the statement said.

On August 17, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry sent a note to Russia’s Foreign Ministry "trying to once again contest the legality of a visit these days to the Russian Federation’s Republic of Crimea by representatives of Russia’s top political leadership," the ministry said.
 [tass.ru]
18/8/15
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