Ministry of Justice announced names of people responsible for annexation of Crimea

Pavlo Petrenko, the Minister of Justice of Ukraine, announced the names of Russian officials responsible for the annexation of Crimea.

As he reported in an interview to LIGA.net.

“Information, which I can disclose at this stage of the investigation, is a list of persons, who during the annexation of Crimean peninsula agitated Ukrainian troops to serve in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation: A. Galkin (Combatant Commander of the Southern Military District, Colonel General), V Kulikov (Deputy Commander in Chief of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, Rear Admiral), V. Mirnov (Deputy Chief of the Communication Center of the Russian Black Sea Fleet), O. Ostrikov (Chief of the Coastal Defence Troops of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea, Major General) and others”, – said Petrenko.

When asked about the evidence of preparing the annexation of Crimea in 2013, Petrenko said that the evidence was added to first lawsuit on the annexation of the peninsula in the European Court of Human Rights.

“We received it (evidence – ed.) from the intelligence services, from the testimony of witnesses, from the Ministry of Defence. Everything indicates that the plan on annexation of Crimea was in the process of implementation in 2013. And Yanukovych knew about it. He must have known, as a president”, – said Petrenko.

According to him, there was deployment of Russian armed forces in the Crimea and sabotage operations were carried out with local authorities.

“There is a lot of other evidence, which I cannot disclose. This refutes the Russian statements, that they stood up for “brotherly Crimean people” when “Kyiv junta” has seized power in Ukraine”, – he added.

The Minister of Justice specified that there are witnesses in the case.

“There are various witnesses. Servicemen, who left Crimea, Crimean Tatars, civilian population. On the average we question two or three persons. This is a huge work. We are recording their information and sending it to the European Court of Human Rights”, – said Petrenko.

As a reminder, in 2014 Russia has occupied the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has officially announced the February 20, 2014, as the beginning of the temporary occupation of the Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation.

Key international organizations, including the UN General Assembly, condemned Russia’s actions and called the occupation and annexation of Crimea as illegal. Economic sanctions were imposed against the Russian Federation.