Crimea, Sikorski, and insults: does Ukraine have Plan B for Crimea?

The source of the conflict can be traced back to a meeting Sikorski with Zelenskyy on September 13. At that time, the Ukrainian president spoke critically, blaming Poland for not providing enough support on Ukraine’s path to the EU.

This was followed by a domestic incident at Krakow airport involving the famous athlete Oleksandr Usyk. Airport workers asked if he was fit enough for the long journey to Valencia. The president got involved in this private quarrel, leading the Foreign Ministry to intervene and threatening a note of protest to the Poles.

So let’s be honest: Radosław Sikorski was already on edge when he attended the YES forum, organized annually by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation - and not for positive reasons.

Earlier, the elite conference on political and business ideas was held in Yalta. However, since the resort town has been under occupation for a long time, it was logical that the topic of Crimea would also be addressed.

"I don’t see anything wrong with professional Western politicians offering their own solutions to the Crimean issue. If there is a lack of meaningful options, and if our current leaders are unable to generate their own, it’s worth listening to what others with experience and status in the West have to say. After all, discussions about Crimea reflect only Sikorski’s perspective. Platforms are organized for such purposes."

I respect the Mejlis's statement and have carefully read the comments from Yermak and the Foreign Ministry affirming that Crimea is Ukraine. But let’s be honest: after the shock of February 24, 2024 - when the offensive from Crimea was highly successful for the enemy - it’s not enough to simply enjoy a cheburek for the sake of Crimea, or to buy a ticket to a concert in Yalta by a band that previously released a hype song about the Bakhmut fortress.

Crimea under Russian control, functioning as a large military base with dominance over a significant portion of the Black Sea, has been a sentence for many Ukrainians. They were promised shuttles to Chonhar, but in reality, they faced torture and death under occupation.

"The ruined Mariupol is the result of a blind eye turned to Crimea. The depopulated Kherson near the frontline is the result of infantile politics. And if we consider the seized Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the regular threats from the Russians to blow something up, this too is the outcome of numerous politicians enjoying baklava for the sake of Crimea, rather than seeking ways to actually reclaim it."

The frivolous attitude toward Crimea - the belief that our people are there, waiting for Ukraine to return and that we just need to release a little water from the Kakhovka reservoir - has lulled many into complacency. The enemy dealt the most painful blow this winter not from Donbas, but from Crimea. The entire occupied South is a result of incompetent policy regarding Crimea.

That is why it is surprising that in the context of searching for options to end the war, and amidst daily statements about a peace summit with or without Russia, we have only one position on Crimea: “Crimea is Ukraine” - without specifying what we will do to demilitarize it and make life unbearable for the hundreds of thousands of Russian security forces who have arrived. These young people have children born in Crimea, and it is logical to think that in a few years, they will claim this land as their own.

What did Sikorski say at Pinchuk's event? "Crimea is symbolically important for Russia, especially for Putin, but it is strategically important for Ukraine. I do not see how peace can be achieved without the demilitarization of Crimea." I don’t see anything wrong with these words, because it is well known that not only Putin but also fashionable Russian opposition figures, will break 100% on the Crimean issue.

Sikorski offered one option. It was an option, not a demand or an ultimatum. “We could put it under a UN mandate with a mission to prepare a fair referendum after verifying who the legitimate residents are... And we could postpone it for 20 years.”

In my opinion, there is nothing critical or wrong here. First of all, we need to audit who the legal residents of Crimea are. A simple test is whether a child born to a couple of occupying soldiers should have the right to live in Crimea, or the son of our local resident and a Russian GRU special forces officer who has killed children in Mariupol. What about holders of Ukrainian passports who later took Russian passports and are happy to work on ships and planes that launched missiles at our cities from the rear?

"Regarding the UN mandate, Ukrainian society often complains that the bureaucrats there are greedy, lazy, and out of touch with the realities of today. They have to handle the issue of Crimea; they should focus on basic monitoring of the lives of those who will continue to live on the annexed peninsula."

When there is a lack of military forces and government experts at this historical moment, it is sometimes better to wait. At one time, China waited nearly 100 years for Hong Kong. And now, it is the only way to supply chips to the Russian military-industrial complex.

Ukrainian leaders can be offended by Sikorski as much as they want. However, the proposal to catalog everything on the peninsula and place them under the supervision of a UN mandate is better than nothing.

What realistic proposals have we heard from our government officials instead? Proposals to plant medical cannabis in the Crimean mountains? Announcements about creating a personnel reserve to take power in Crimea? However, an essential question remains: whose hands should be used to liberate Crimea? After all, the summer counteroffensive of 2023 and the PR surrounding it showed that this is not an easy tourist bike ride.

Meanwhile, textbooks for Ukrainian seventh-graders are printing maps of Ukraine without Crimea. I don’t know whether this is a designer’s mistake or a crisis of professional staffing in the Ministry of Education.

The truth remains: the longer we keep saying that “Crimea is Ukraine” without plans A and B, the stronger Russia will grow on the occupied peninsula.

Finally, any peace summit will not bring peace without resolving the Crimean issue. This includes demilitarization and the return to Russia of everyone involved in the occupation and shelling in Ukraine. And you know, I don’t care if these people have Ukrainian passports and Ukrainian blood. Otherwise, these murderers will repeat their actions. They are fixated on capturing Odesa - from the Black Sea.

Especially for Espreso

About the author: Maryna Danyliuk-Yarmolaieva, journalist.

The editors don't always share the opinions expressed by the authors of blogs.