“I distinguish between political rhetoric and facts.” Avakov commented on Zelensky’s statement about punishing those responsible for the surrender of Crimea.

In 2014, the Ukrainians did everything possible to protect themselves. This was stated by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Arsen Avakov, on October 23 during the Special Security Forum in Kiev, commenting on the statement of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, on the punishment of those responsible for the surrender of Crimea. The broadcast takes place on the Facebook channel Open Ukraine.

On October 20, during his address to the Verkhovna Rada, Zelensky said that those who in 2014 decided not to interfere with the Russian occupation of Crimea should be held accountable.

“I distinguish between political rhetoric and exclusively facts. The facts of that time said that Ukraine had a limit in its capacities and strengths to take certain steps. And based on this, it is worth evaluating that moment. I think these things are not the subject of public debate, but they are the subject of a serious analysis of the situation. And after serious analysis, we can draw conclusions: what they could, what they couldn’t. I think then the Ukrainians did everything they could, defending themselves, “Avakov said.

According to him, the pre-election rhetoric exacerbates the problems.

“And when we argue among ourselves about these things, we should always think and know that not everything is easy in the world. There are many problems in the world, and nobody cares about Ukraine except ourselves. Therefore, when we discuss among ourselves and we are trying to prick ourselves more painfully, and we use sometimes unacceptable methods in rhetoric, we must know that this is how we weaken ourselves, ”said the minister.

Russia annexed Crimea after illegal referendum on March 16, 2014… Ukraine and most of the countries of the world do not recognize the accession of the peninsula to the Russian Federation. At the moment, there is a checkpoint regime between mainland Ukraine and Crimea, and Kiev does not de facto control the peninsula.

Avakov at that time already held the post of Minister of the Interior of Ukraine.

On February 22, 2016, at a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada National Defense and Security Committee, a declassified transcript of the February 28, 2014 NSDC meeting was released, in which issues of the territorial integrity of the country and the threat of annexation of Crimea. The meeting was called after a group of armed men seized the Crimean parliament and government buildings. According to the published text, Batkivshchyna party leader Yulia Tymoshenko asked the NSDC members to reject the proposal to declare a state of emergency, believing that the Ukrainian army would not be able to resist the Russian troops. The then acting President Alexander Turchinov was the only member of the NSDC who supported the introduction of martial law.

According to Turchynov, in early 2014, the Armed Forces of Ukraine Only two battalion tactical groups could oppose Russia… According to Turchynov, most of the Ukrainian military, employees of the SBU and the Interior Ministry, who were on the peninsula during the annexation, changed their oaths. “To understand the situation: of the 13,468 soldiers and officers of the Armed Forces who were in Crimea, only 3,990 (29.6%) did not betray their country, only 88 people (0.8%) of the 10,936 employees of the Ministry of the Interior did not betray their country, of the 1,870 border guards to Ukraine only 519 (27.7%) returned, of 2240 SBU employees – only 242 (10.8%), of 527 officers and NCOs of the Security Directorate of the State did not betray Ukraine – only 20 people (3.8%) “, – Turchinov said in early 2017.