The
Autonomous Republic of Crimea (
Ukrainian:
Автономна Республіка Крим,
Avtonomna Respublika Krym;
Russian:
Автономная Республика Крым,
Avtonomnaya Respublika Krym;
Crimean Tatar:
Qırım Muhtar Cumhuriyeti, Къырым Мухтар Джумхуриети)
[6] is an
autonomous republic in the southwestern region of
Ukraine, located on the
Crimean Peninsula on the north shore of the
Black Sea
with a predominantly Russian ethnic majority (58%). The Autonomous
Republic of Crimea includes nearly all of the Crimean Peninsula, with
the small exception of
Sevastopol.
Due to recent political instability in the region and
occupation by Russian military forces, national sovereignty over the peninsula is currently being disputed by Russia (March 2014).
[7][8][9] On March 11, 2014, the parliament of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea adopted a
Crimean declaration of independence from Ukraine, ahead of a planned referendum.
[10]
On 16 March 2014, an overwhelming majority allegedly voted in favour of
independence of Crimea from Ukraine and joining Russia as a federal
subject.
[11][12] After the referendum, Crimean lawmakers formally voted both to secede from Ukraine and ask for membership in the
Russian Federation.
The legitimacy and legality of the vote has been rejected by the
government of Ukraine and the international community (with the
exception of Russia).
[13]
Since ca. 700 BC, the peninsula has changed hands well over a dozen times, with all or part having been controlled by
Cimmerians,
Bulgars,
Greeks,
Scythians,
Romans,
Goths,
Huns,
Khazars,
Kievan Rus' (early Ukraine), the
Byzantine Empire,
Venice,
Genoa,
Kipchaks, the
Golden Horde, the
Ottoman Empire, the
Russian Empire, the
Soviet Union,
Nazi Germany and modern independent
Ukraine.
The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is an autonomous
parliamentary republic within Ukraine
[7] and is governed by the
Constitution of Crimea in accordance with the laws of Ukraine. The capital and administrative seat of the republic's government is the city of
Simferopol,
located in the center of the peninsula. Crimea's area is 26,200 square
kilometers (10,100 sq mi) and its population was 1,973,185 as of 2007.
These figures do not include the area and population of the City of
Sevastopol
(2007 population: 379,200), which is administratively separate from the
autonomous republic. The peninsula thus has 2,352,385 people (2007
estimate).
Etymology
The name
Crimea derives from the name of the city of Qırım (today's
Stary Krym), which served as a capital of the Crimean province of the
Golden Horde. The name Krim thus traces to the Tatar word for 'steppe, hill' (
Crimean Tatar:
qırım - ‘my steppe, hill’, from
Old Turkic,
Middle Turkic qır ‘mountain top, mountain ridge; steppe, desert, level ground’).
[17][18] Russian
Krym is a Russified form of Qırım. The
ancient Greeks called Crimea
Tauris (later
Taurica, Ταυρική in
Ancient Greek), after its inhabitants, the
Tauri. The Greek historian
Herodotus accounts for the name by asserting that
Heracles plowed that land using a huge ox ("Taurus"). Herodotus also refers to a nearby region called
Cremni[19] or 'the Cliffs
'",
which may also refer to the Crimean peninsula, notable for its cliffs
along what is otherwise a flat northern coastline of the Black Sea.
In English, Crimea was often referred to with the
definite article, as
the Crimea, until well into the 20th century.
History
Early history
Taurica was the name of Crimea in
antiquity. Taurica was inhabited by a variety of peoples. The inland regions were inhabited by
Scythians and the mountainous south coast by the Taures, an offshoot of the
Cimmerians. Greek settlers inhabited a number of colonies along the coast of the peninsula, notably the city of
Chersonesos in modern Sevastopol. In the 4th century BC
[20] the eastern part of Taurica became part of the
Bosporan Kingdom, before being incorporated into the
Roman Empire in the 1st century BC. During the 1st, 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, Taurica was host to Roman colonists in
Charax, Crimea.
[21] Taurica was eventually renamed by the
Crimean Tatars, from whose
language Crimea's modern name derives. The word "Crimea" comes from the Crimean Tatar name
Qırım, via Greek
Krimea (Κριμαία).
[citation needed]
Throughout the later centuries, Crimea was invaded or occupied successively by the
Scythians,
Sarmatians,
Goths (AD 250), the
Huns (376), the
Bulgars (4th–8th century), the
Khazars (8th century), the state of
Kievan Rus' (10th–11th centuries), the
Byzantine Empire (1016), the
Kipchaks (Kumans) (1050), and the
Mongols (1237).
[citation needed] In the 13th century, the
Republic of Genoa seized the settlements that their rivals, the
Venetians, had built along the Crimean coast and gained control of the Crimean economy and the Black Sea commerce for two centuries.
[citation needed] The
Black Death pandemic came to Europe in the 14th century, probably aboard Genoese merchant ships from the Crimean peninsula.
[22]
A number of
Turkic peoples, now collectively known as the
Crimean Tatars,
came to inhabit the peninsula starting with the early Middle Ages. At
times these dominated the peninsula demographically, while at other
times their numbers dwindled (1750–1944) or disappeared altogether
(1944–91), only to reappear again (1991–present) After the destruction
of the
Golden Horde by
Tamerlane, the Crimean Tatars founded an independent
Crimean Khanate in 1441, under
Hacı I Giray, a descendant of
Genghis Khan. The Crimean Tatars controlled the steppes that stretched from the
Kuban and to the
Dniester River,
however, they were initially unable to take control over commercial
Genoese towns. After the capture of Genoese towns, the Ottoman Sultan
held
Meñli I Giray captive,
[23]
later releasing him in return for accepting Ottoman sovereignty above
the Crimean Khans and allowing them rule as tributary princes of the
Ottoman Empire.
[24][25]:78
However, the Crimean Khans still had a large amount of autonomy from
the Ottoman Empire. In 1774, the Crimean Khans fell under Russian
influence with the
Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca and, in 1783, the entire Crimea was annexed by the
Russian Empire.
[25]:176
Crimean Gothic, an East Germanic language, was spoken by the
Crimean Goths in some isolated locations in Crimea until the late 18th century.
[26]
Crimean Khanate
Slave trade
Until the late 18th century, Crimean Tatars maintained a massive
slave trade with the
Ottoman Empire and the Middle East.
[27] About 2 million slaves from Russia and Ukraine were sold over the period 1500–1700.
[28] Tatars were known for frequent, at some periods almost annual, devastating raids on the
Slavic peoples to the north. In 1769 a last major
Tatar raid, which took place during the
Russo-Turkish War, saw the capture of 20,000 slaves.
[29]
Crimean War and the 19th century
British cavalry charged against Russian forces at the
Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War
Crimea became part of Russia's
Taurida Governorate and was the site of much of the fighting in the
Crimean War
(1853–1856) between Russia on one side, and France, Britain, the
Ottoman Empire, and Sardinia on the other. Russia and the Ottoman Empire
went to war in October 1853 over Russia's rights to protect
Orthodox Christians.
Russia gained the upper hand after destroying the Ottoman fleet at the
Black Sea port of Sinope; to stop Russia's conquest, France and Britain
entered in March 1854. Most of the fighting took place for control of
the Black Sea, with land battles on the Crimean peninsula in southern
Russia. The Russians held their great
fortress at Sevastopol
for over a year. After it fell, peace was arranged at Paris in March
1856. The religion issue had already been resolved. The main results
were that the Black Sea was neutralized—Russia would have no warships
there—and the two
vassals,
Wallachia and
Moldavia,
became largely independent under nominal Ottoman rule. The war
devastated much of the economic and social infrastructure of the
peninsula.
Crimea in the 20th and 21st centuries
In the Soviet Union
During the
Russian Civil War following the overthrow of the Russian Empire, Crimea changed hands a number of times and was a stronghold of the
anti-Bolshevik White Army. It was in Crimea that the White Russians led by
General Wrangel made their last stand against the Anarchist forces of
Nestor Makhno and the
Red Army
in 1920. Approximately 50,000 White prisoners of war and civilians were
summarily executed by shooting or hanging after the defeat of General
Wrangel at the end of 1920.
[30] This is considered one of the largest massacres in the Civil War.
[31]
During World War II, Crimea was the scene of several
bloody battles. The Axis forces under the command of
Nazi Germany suffered heavy casualties in the summer of 1941 as they tried to advance through the narrow
Isthmus of Perekop
linking Crimea to the Soviet mainland. Once the Axis forces broke
through, they occupied most of Crimea, with the exception of the city of
Sevastopol, which
held out
from October 1941 until 4 July 1942 when the Germans finally captured
the city. From 1 September 1942, the peninsula was administered as the
Generalbezirk Krim (general district of Crimea)
und Teilbezirk (and sub-district)
Taurien.
In spite of heavy-handed tactics by the Nazis and their allies, the
Crimean mountains remained an unconquered stronghold of the native
resistance until the day when the peninsula
was freed from the occupying force in 1944.
On 18 May 1944, the entire population of the
Crimean Tatars was forcibly deported in the "
Sürgün" (Turkish (Crimean Tatar) for exile) to Central Asia by
Joseph Stalin's
Soviet government as a form of
collective punishment, on the grounds that they had collaborated with the
Nazi occupation forces and formed anti-Soviet
Tatar Legions.
[25] An estimated 46% of the deportees died from hunger and disease.
[33]
On 26 June of the same year, the Armenian, Bulgarian, and Greek
population was also deported to Central Asia. By the end of summer of
1944, the
ethnic cleansing
of Crimea was complete. In 1967, the Crimean Tatars were rehabilitated,
but they were banned from legally returning to their homeland until the
last days of the Soviet Union. The Crimean ASSR was abolished on 30
June 1945 and transformed into the
Crimean Oblast (
province) of the
Russian SFSR.
In post-war years, Crimea thrived as a prime tourist destination, built with new attractions and
spas for tourists. Tourists came from all over the Soviet Union and neighbouring countries.
[24] Crimea's infrastructure and manufacturing was also developed, particularly around the sea ports at
Kerch and Sevastopol and in the oblast's landlocked capital of Simferopol.
In Independent Ukraine
With the
collapse of the Soviet Union, Crimea became part of the newly independent
Ukraine, which led to tensions between
Russia and Ukraine.
[nb 1] With the
Black Sea Fleet
based on the peninsula, worries of armed skirmishes were occasionally
raised. Crimean Tatars began returning from exile and resettling in
Crimea.
On 26 February 1992, the
Verkhovniy Sovet (the Crimean parliament) renamed the ASSR the Republic of Crimea and proclaimed self-government on 5 May 1992
[40][41] (which was yet to be approved by a referendum held 2 August 1992
[42])
[clarification needed Did the referendum happen, or was it cancelled?] and passed the first
Crimean constitution the same day.
[42] On 6 May 1992 the same parliament inserted a new sentence into this constitution that declared that Crimea was part of Ukraine.
[42]
On 14 October 1993, the Crimean parliament established the post of
President of Crimea and agreed on a quota of Crimean Tatars represented in the Council of 14. However, political turmoil continued. Amendments
[clarification needed] to the constitution eased the conflict,
[citation needed] but on 17 March 1995, the
parliament of Ukraine intervened, scrapping the Crimean Constitution and removing
Yuriy Meshkov (the President of Crimea) along with his office for his actions against the state and promoting integration with
Russia.
[44]
After an interim constitution, the current constitution was put into
effect, changing the territory's name to the Autonomous Republic of
Crimea.
Following the ratification of the May 1997 Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership on friendship and division of the
Black Sea Fleet, international tensions slowly eased. However, in 2006,
anti-NATO protests broke out on the peninsula.
[45] In September 2008, the
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko accused Russia of giving out
Russian passports
to the population in the Crimea and described it as a "real problem"
given Russia's declared policy of military intervention abroad to
protect Russian citizens.
[46]
On 24 August 2009, anti-Ukrainian demonstrations were held in Crimea by ethnic Russian residents.
Sergei Tsekov (of the
Russian Bloc[47] and then deputy speaker of the
Crimean parliament[48]) said then that he hoped that Russia would treat the Crimea the same way as it had treated
South Ossetia and
Abkhazia.
[49] Chaos in the Ukrainian parliament erupted during a debate over the extension of the lease on a
Russian naval base on 27 April 2010 after Ukraine’s parliament ratified
the treaty that extends
Russia's lease on naval moorings and shore installations in port of
Sevastopol and other locations in Crimea until 2042 with optional five-year renewals. Along with
Verkhovna Rada, the treaty was ratified by the Russian
State Duma as well.
[50]
2014 Crimean crisis and Russian military intervention
Geopolitics of the Crimean autonomous Republic, March 2014.
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The demonstrations followed the ousting of the Ukraine President
Viktor Yanukovych on 22 February 2014, and a push by pro-Russian protesters for Crimea to secede from Ukraine and seek assistance from Russia.
[54]
On 28 February 2014,
Russian Ground Forces occupied airports and other strategic locations in Crimea.
[55] The interim Government of Ukraine described the events as an invasion and occupation of Crimea by Russian forces.
[56][57] However, Russian troops have been stationed in Crimea for over a decade under an agreement with Ukraine,
[58] although the number of forces present in late February 2014 constituted a violation of Ukrainian-Russian treaty agreements.
[citation needed]
Gunmen, either armed militants or Russian special forces, occupied the
Crimean parliament. Under armed guard and with the doors locked, members
of parliament apparently elected
Sergey Aksyonov as the new Crimean Prime Minister. De facto Prime Minister
Sergey Aksyonov
said he asserted sole control over Crimea's security forces and
appealed to Russia "for assistance in guaranteeing peace and calmness"
on the peninsula. The central Ukrainian government does not recognize
the Aksyonov administration and considers it illegal.
[59][60]
Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich sent a letter to Putin
asking him to use military force in Ukraine to restore law and order.
[61] The Russian foreign ministry stated that
"movement
of the Black Sea Fleet armored vehicles in Crimea (...) happens in full
accordance with basic Russian-Ukrainian agreements on the Black Sea
Fleet".
[62]
On 1 March, the Russian parliament granted President
Vladimir Putin the authority to use military force in Ukraine.
[63] The move was condemned by many Western and Western-aligned nations. On the same day, the acting president of Ukraine,
Oleksandr Turchynov decried the appointment of the
Prime Minister of Crimea as unconstitutional.
[64] Russia established de facto control of the territory.
On 3 March, it was reported that the head of Russia's Black Sea Fleet
gave Ukraine a deadline of dawn on the 4th to surrender their control
of the Crimea, or face an assault by Russian troops occupying the area.
[65] However, Interfax news agency later quoted a fleet spokesman who denied that any ultimatum had been issued.
[65] Nothing came to pass at the deadline.
On 4 March, several Ukrainian bases and navy ships in Crimea reported
being intimidated by Russian forces but vowed non-violence. In one
particular display, Ukrainian soldiers at Belbek airbase marched unarmed
from their barracks to the Russian lines, where they were stopped by
sentries who fired warning shots and surrounded them. Journalists
recorded the encounter.
[66] Ukrainian warships were also effectively blockaded in their port of Sevastopol.
[67][68]
On 6 March, MPs of the Crimean Parliament asked the Russian Government for the region to become a subject of the
Russian Federation
with a referendum on the issue set for the Crimean region for March
16th. The Ukrainian central government, EU and US disputed the
legitimacy of the request and referendum. Article 73 of the Constitution
of Ukraine states: "Alterations to the territory of Ukraine shall be
resolved exclusively by the All-Ukrainian referendum."
International monitors arrived in Ukraine to assess the situation in
Crimea but were halted by armed militants at the Crimean border.
[70][71] Russian forces scuttled a Russian Kara-class Cruiser
Ochakov near
Novoozerne,
Yevpatoria on the west coast of Crimea to blockade Ukrainian navy ships in their port on
Donuzlav Lake.
[72][73]
On 7 March, Russian forces scuttled a second ship, a diving support vessel, to further block the navy port at
Donuzlav Lake.
[73]
The Crimean Parliament released the Ballot Questions for the 16 March referendum. The referendum questions are:
- "Do you support rejoining Crimea with Russia as a subject of the Russian Federation?"
- "Do you support restoration of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Crimea and Crimea's status as a part of Ukraine?"
There is no option on the 16 March ballot to maintain the status quo.
[clarification needed Is it one either / or question or twe yes / no questions?]
Ukranian outlets considered the questions as equivalent to "join Russia
immediately or declare independence and then join Russia."
[74][75] The current
Crimean constitution came into effect in 1999 and Article 135 of the
Ukrainian constitution provides that the Crimean Constitution must be approved by the Ukrainian parliament.
Geography
Crimea is located on the northern coast of the
Black Sea and on the western coast of the
Sea of Azov, bordering
Kherson Oblast from the North. There are two rural communities of
Henichesk Raion in Kherson Oblast that are physically located on the peninsula, on the smaller peninsula
Arabat Spit, Shchaslyvtseve and Strilkove. Although located in the southwestern part of the Crimean peninsula, the city of
Sevastopol has a special but separate
municipality status within
Ukraine. Crimea's total land area is 26,100 km
2 (10,077 sq mi).
Crimea is connected to the mainland by the 5–7 kilometers (3.1–4.3 mi) wide
Isthmus of Perekop. At the eastern tip is the
Kerch Peninsula, which is directly opposite the
Taman Peninsula on the Russian mainland. Between the Kerch and Taman peninsulas, lies the 3–13 kilometers (1.9–8.1 mi) wide
Strait of Kerch,
which connects the waters of the Black Sea with the Sea of Azov. The
peninsula consists of many other smaller peninsulas such as Arabat Spit,
Kerch peninsula,
Herakles peninsula,
Tarhan Qut peninsula and many others. Crimea also features other headlands such as
Cape Priboiny,
Cape Tarhan Qut,
[citation needed] Sarych,
Nicholas Cape,
Cape Fonar,
Cape Fiolent,
Qazan Tip,
[citation needed] Cape Aq Burun, and many others.
Geographically, the peninsula is generally divided into three zones: steppes, mountains and southern coast.
The southeast coast is flanked at a distance of 8–12 kilometers (5.0–7.5 mi) from the sea by a parallel range of mountains, the
Crimean Mountains.
[76]
These mountains are backed by secondary parallel ranges. Seventy-five
percent of the remaining area of Crimea consists of semiarid
prairie lands, a southward continuation of the
Pontic steppes,
which slope gently to the northwest from the foot of the Crimean
Mountains. The main range of these mountains shoots up with
extraordinary abruptness from the deep floor of the
Black Sea to an altitude of 600–750 meters (1,969–2,461 ft), beginning at the southwest point of the
peninsula, called
Cape Fiolente. It was believed that this cape was supposedly crowned with the temple of
Artemis, where
Iphigeneia is said to have officiated as priestess.
[77]
The terrain that lies beyond the sheltering Crimean Mountain range is
of an altogether different character. Here, the narrow strip of coast
and the slopes of the mountains are smothered with greenery. This
"riviera" stretches along the southeast coast from capes
Fiolente and
Aya, in the south, to Feodosiya, and is studded with summer sea-bathing resorts such as
Alupka,
Yalta,
Gurzuf,
Alushta,
Sudak, and
Feodosiya. During the years of
Soviet rule, the resorts and
dachas of this coast served as the prime perquisites of the politically loyal.
[citation needed]why here? and ref?
In addition, vineyards and fruit orchards are located in the region.
Fishing, mining, and the production of essential oils are also
important. Numerous
Crimean Tatar villages,
mosques,
monasteries, and
palaces of the Russian imperial family and nobles are found here, as well as picturesque ancient Greek and medieval castles.
-
-
The mountain of Eklizi-Burun, near Alushta
-
Climate
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Most of Crimea has a temperate continental climate, except for the south coast where it experiences a humid
[citation needed]
subtropical climate, due to warm influences from the Black Sea. Summers
can be hot (28 °C or 82.4 °F Jul average) and winters are cool (−0.3 °C
or 31.5 °F Jan average) in the interior, on the south coast winters are
milder (4 °C or 39.2 °F Jan average) and temperatures much below
freezing are exceptional. Precipitation throughout Crimea is low,
averaging only 400 mm (15.7 in) a year. Because of its climate, the
southern Crimean coast is a popular beach and sun resort for Ukrainian
and Russian tourists.
Government and politics
The executive power is represented by the
Council of Ministers, headed by a
Chairman who is appointed and dismissed by the Verkhovna Rada, with the consent of the
President of Ukraine.
[5][79] The authority and operation of the Supreme Council and the Council of Ministers of Crimea are determined by the
Constitution of Ukraine and other the laws of Ukraine, as well as by regular decisions carried out by the Supreme Council of Crimea.
[79]
Administrative divisions
Crimea is subdivided into 25 regions: 14
raions (
districts) and 11 city municipalities, officially known as
territories governed by city councils.
[82] While the
City of Sevastopol
is located on the Crimean peninsula, it is administratively separate
from the rest of Crimea and is one of two special municipalities of
Ukraine. Sevastopol, while having a separate administration, is tightly
integrated within the infrastructure of the whole peninsula.
Photos: The search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370
