Barbed wire, Jeep, metal anti-tank obstacles… At the heart of the power zone in Kiev, on the hill where ministries, embassies, the presidency and Parliament are concentrated, the Crimean platform appears under heavy guard. The building of this administrative body, directly connected to the Ukrainian government, is located exactly halfway between the presidential palace and the Rada, where the deputies sit. “The location was chosen by President Zelensky himself, as a signal sent to the rest of the world, supports Maria Tomac, the director of the organization: Crimea remains at the center of all decisions taken in Ukraine.”
The Crimean platform was created in August 2021, on the occasion of the thirty years of Ukrainian independence. Its objective: to prepare the administrative reconquest of the peninsula, after its military liberation. Nicknamed “the pearl of Ukraine”, Crimea has been under Russian occupation since 2014 and the appearance of “little green men” in the region… These, heavily armed and trained soldiers, then help the separatists to seize strategic points and expel the Ukrainian authorities. A few weeks later, in March 2014, Russia organized an illegal referendum in Crimea and annexed the territory. A prelude to the total war waged since February 2022.
Millions of questions after nine years of occupation
Maria Tomac receives us in a room covered with paintings and photographs of landscapes of Crimea, Ukraine’s leading tourist destination before its annexation. Within these walls, some thirty civil servants are working hard so that everything is ready on the day of liberation: what to do with the 800,000 Russian civilians living in Crimea? Or of the 50,000 Ukrainian civil servants who collaborate with the occupier? Should we keep 1.2 million judgments issued by courts under the aegis of Moscow? And what about the reforms adopted in kyiv in the meantime? “Millions of questions require answers and the task will be immense, after almost ten years of occupation, recognizes Maria Tomac. Crimea will need a period of transition with, initially, a military administration, which will then leave its place in a civil administration.”
Concrete plans for the reintegration of the territory have been drawn up and sent to groups of deputies, who are currently sending back their suggestions. The government has already taken decisions, for example authorizing its citizens to take a Russian passport on a temporary basis, which is currently compulsory for working, buying a house or a car in Crimea. As for the Russian citizens present in the region, they will have a period, with still unclear limits, to leave after the takeover by kyiv.
A woman walks past Russian patriotic graffiti in Yalta on the annexed Crimean peninsula on June 18, 2023.
© / afp.com/Olga MALTSEVA
Another challenge ahead is to integrate Ukrainians who have lived under Russian occupation for ten years, with education and the media under the orders of the Kremlin. Sasha grew up in Crimea, in Sevastopol, before leaving to study in kyiv, before the annexation, and settling there. Now in charge of communication in a large IT company, the young woman has lost all contact with her friends who remained in Crimea. “When I told them what we were going through in Kiev at the start of the total invasion, they replied that I was spitting out American propaganda, sighs Sasha. who worries me the most for the future of my country and Crimea.”
In kyiv, the government wants to be optimistic about the state of mind of the Crimeans and cites polls showing a desire for reunification. The Crimea platform also recognizes the mistakes of the past, which caused the region to fall, rather easily, into the hands of the occupier. “While the pro-Russian enthusiasm before the annexation must be put into perspective, since only three deputies of the Crimean Parliament were labeled as such, one must not overlook the immense dissatisfaction that existed with regard to mainland Ukraine, admits Maria Tomac. The policies towards Crimea were corrupt, and everyone recognizes that in Kiev today. Our approach has nothing to do with that of previous governments: we want to prepare the future of Crimea, its development economy, its infrastructure, strengthening the rights of its minorities, its culture…”
Convince foreign leaders not to bend
The Crimea platform also aims to show the rest of the world that Ukraine will not give up on this region. Some politicians – such as Brazilian President Lula – suggest that as part of negotiations to end the war, kyiv will have to agree to formally cede the peninsula to Moscow. Unthinkable for Zelensky, who hammers it as soon as he has the opportunity. This year, the Head of State even celebrated Eid-el-Kébir with Crimean Tatars, an indigenous population and a Muslim minority targeted by Russian repression. “A great hypocrisy dominates on the international scene, deplores Maria Tomac. Publicly, all the leaders affirm that Crimea remains Ukrainian and no one has recognized the Russian annexation. But behind the scenes, many are expressing doubts and wondering about the Ukrainian nature of Crimea. It’s crazy, but Russian lies work and influence minds abroad.”
The bridge connecting Russia and Crimea in flames after a truck bomb attack, October 8, 2022
© / afp.com/-
Taking back Crimea, which Vladimir Putin has made a symbol of the rediscovered greatness of his country, nevertheless promises to be difficult. And this, even if this territory would in theory be easier to isolate from Russian reinforcements than the regions of Donbass. “From a military point of view, it is not necessary to march on Crimea, explains a foreign analyst close to the Ukrainian government. By cutting Crimea from its sources of supply, in particular by destroying the only bridge which connects it to Russia [NDLR : le pont de Kertch, de 18 kilomètres de long, inauguré en 2018] and by bringing long-range weapons to the gates of the peninsula, it could fall into the hands of Ukraine. This is, without a doubt, one of the major objectives of the counter-offensive.”
The Battle of Crimea, hoped for by all in kyiv, is of highly strategic interest for Ukraine. Russia has built an ideal rear base there for its invasion, with the port of Sevastopol hosting a large part of its Black Sea fleet. “Many attacks leave from Crimea, assures journalist Nataliya Gumenyuk, specialist in the conflict. By occupying Crimea, Russia is blocking the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea, and can afford to suffocate the Ukrainian economy. The Kremlin presented the conquest of this region as the return of a past glory in the Russian bosom, but it was in fact an essential element to launch a full-scale war against Ukraine.