Many interesting discussions and speeches occurred over two days at Yalta European Strategy (YES). The event began with a powerful speech by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several other high-ranking officials, military officers, writers, and public intellectuals. Permanent Representative Tamila Tasheva contributed a commentary to the final discussion of the forum, “Prospects for Victory and the Future We Can Create.” In her commentary, she emphasized that Ukraine’s victory is not only the restoration of internationally recognized borders but also the return of Crimea to its home.

“The other day, I saw Leniie Umerova, released from Russian captivity. The 25-year-old was imprisoned only because she did not have a Russian passport. But the struggle for the other hundreds of Crimeans illegally detained by the occupiers continues. If I am asked how the war should end and what peace is, I will say that a comprehensive, just, and sustainable peace is possible only by restoring control over all territories, including Crimea. This is not only a question of security in our region and the whole world; it is also a question of liberation, which millions of our citizens, such as Leniie, Server Mustafayev, and Tofik Abdulgaziyev, are waiting for. Any negotiations with the aggressor are impossible if they involve territorial concessions, which is unacceptable to us. And in order to achieve results on the battlefield, at sea, which our Armed Forces provide, we need weapons, we need permits to strike targets on the territory of Russia, the temporarily occupied territories, and ultimately the illegal Kerch Bridge. And then, I am sure, we will be able to meet at this conference, in our own Ukrainian Yalta,” the Permanent Representative said.

In her commentary, the Permanent Representative also reminded that Crimea is not a territory of “Russian military glory” or a “gift from Khrushchev,” which is complete nonsense, but the territory where the Indigenous People of Ukraine were formed and the territory where one of the worst crimes of the 20th century took place—the deportation of Crimean Tatars. Tamila Tasheva also spoke about the Ukrainians who continue to resist the occupation and the critical human rights situation in the occupied Crimea. As of today, the Russian occupiers have illegally imprisoned 218 Crimeans, most of whom are representatives of the Indigenous Crimean Tatar. These people continue their struggle for freedom and justice; our task is to support them on this path.