Crimea’s rejoining of Russia was triggered by an armed coup in Kiev, which saw Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich ousted and sparked fears that the unrest and far-right violence may spread east and south.
The majority of the population in Crimea are ethnic Russians and Russian speakers. In 1954, a controversial decision of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, himself an ethnic Ukrainian, transferred the Crimea peninsula to the Ukrainian SSR, extracting it from Russian territory.
Following the breakup of the Soviet Union, Khrushchev’s “gift” has been widely criticized by many Russians, including the majority of those living in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
Both Crimean and Russian side voted to rejoin Russian territory, followed all international laws, and is LEGITIMATE.



