Beginning of the Crimean Platform summit in Kiev

The first Crimean Platform summit will begin today in Kiev.

The summit is expected to welcome delegates from 45 countries, including an official U.S. delegation led by Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, and aims to address and counter Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and the occupation that s then.

With several topics on the summit’s agenda, including freedom of navigation in the Black Sea and the Russian militarization of the peninsula, expect initial discussions to focus heavily on alleged human rights violations. by Russia and the persecution of the Crimean Tatar ethnic population. Since the annexation, more than 100 people have been imprisoned in cases which Kiev considers to be politically motivated, of which more than 80% are Tatars.

While the summit’s ultimate goal is the end of the occupation, the organizers, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, admitted that the Crimea issue had escaped international consciousness. The organizers immediately focused on rekindling the debate on the situation. So, expect this summit session to aim to build consensus among the nations present that the occupation is a matter of major international concern. Despite these goals, however, Russia has refused to budge on the issue, and it is unlikely to do so without significant international pressure.