15 May 2025

During a Press Conference in Ankara, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Emphasized That Crimea Is Ukraine and Territorial Issues Are Not Subject to Negotiation

Today, during a press conference in Türkiye, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy reaffirmed the state’s unwavering stance on Crimea. He emphasized that Ukraine’s territorial integrity is not a subject for negotiation, as doing so would violate the Constitution of Ukraine.

“Crimea is part of our state. Türkiye supports this position. It understands it. It upholds the UN Charter and affirms that Crimea is Ukraine, Crimea is a Ukrainian peninsula. Crimea is Ukrainian. We do not recognize the temporarily occupied territories as Russian, we do not recognize Crimea as Russian. The entire world holds this position. To negotiate on territorial issues is to violate our Constitution. We are ready and willing to discuss what is happening there, what humanitarian crises exist — but in all discussions, from a legal standpoint, we do not recognize the temporarily occupied territories as Russian. I want to underscore this — it is my firm and unwavering position,” said the Head of State.

At the beginning of the press conference, President Zelenskyy thanked President of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and for consistently maintaining the position that Crimea is, and has always been, part of Ukraine.

“These are very important signals of both our personal friendship and Türkiye’s political support for Ukraine,” stated Volodymyr Zelenskyy.