Ukraine condemns Russia’s conducting the population census in the occupied Crimea, the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says

Ukraine condemns the Russian Federation's conduct of an all-Russian census on the territory of the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

This is declared in a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"Such actions of the Russian Federation are directed against the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and are a continuation of attempts to legitimize the attempt to annex the temporarily occupied Crimea, extend Russian legislation to its territory. The census in the temporarily occupied territory is an unfriendly act for our state, and we reserve to the application of retorsion," declared in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It is noted that, following the provisions of UN General Assembly resolution 68/262, the so-called "referendum" in Crimea, held by the Russian occupation administration on March 16, 2014, has no legal force and cannot be the basis for any change in the status of the Crimean peninsula.

In particular, the "referendum" cannot serve as a basis for reflecting the results of the census in the occupied Crimea as part of the all-Russian census.

The Foreign Ministry noted that the participants of the international Crimean Platform reaffirmed their non-recognition of any change in the status of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, which are an integral part of Ukraine's territory, in the Joint Declaration.

The members of the Crimean Platform will resolutely oppose any unilateral attempts to change the international order based on the rule of law

The Foreign Ministry emphasizes that the basis for assessing the situation in Crimea can only be impartial and objective monitoring by international organizations that have a mandate, carried out following Ukrainian law and international law, as well as human rights NGOs.

Ukraine calls on the international community to condemn Russia's conduct of an all-Russian census in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, not to recognize or use its results.