Maintaining Russia’s grip on Crimea? How Crimean Tatars are reacting – DW – 05/03/2025

As part of Donald Trump’s “peace plan,” the US President is preparing to recognize Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula, as Russian territory permanently. Fearing for their future under Russian rule, Crimean Tatars, the original inhabitants of the region, continue to resist. “We know all too well what Russia is like,” says one anonymous resident. “It is a successor to the Soviet Union, which once deported my mother and grandmother.” Persecution of the Crimean Tatars has a long history, dating back to Tsarist Russia and continuation under the Soviets. For Nariman Dzhelyal, first deputy chairman of the Mejlis (the representative body of the Crimean Tatars), the idea of US representatives agreeing to territorial concessions to Russia feels like a betrayal. “In the minds of most Ukrainians and certain residents of Crimea, the US has always been a leader in protecting human rights and a bastion of democracy. And now we are experiencing a U-turn,” he says. “Such commercial pragmatism,” he adds, “is a disappointment.” A soldier nicknamed “Tataryn” sums up the sentiment of many: “You can give up everything, but not your own country.”

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/keeping-russian-control-of-crimea-crimean-tatars-respond/a-72407629?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf