Chubarov: Russian invasion of Crimea is threat to world peace, security

Refat Chubarov, chairman of the Mejlis, the representative body of Crimean Tatars, says he is afraid that Russians will accuse the ethnic group of being a threat to ethnic Russians. So he is asking Tatars to minimize their time in public and avoid confrontations.

Some Tatars, however, have done the opposite and formed their own self-defense units that patrol streets. These civic guards are unarmed and are multinational. “Their main task is to prevent provocations,” Chubarov said. 

Crimean Tatars have always been pro-Ukrainian despite the fact that they face discrimination. They do not recognize the Feb. 27 appointment of the pro-Russian Serhiy Aksenev as the autonomous republic’s new prime minister. He said that Aksenev has not held talks with Tatar leaders.

Some 250,000 Tatars live in Crimea, making up 12 percent of the peninsula’s 2.2 million people, the majority of whom are ethnic Russians.

On March 2, nearly 1,000 Crimean Tatars came to the battalion of the Marine Corps of Ukrainian naval forces in Kerch to protect the soldiers from Russian armed troops.

Chubarov called on Russians to protest in their own cities against th war in Ukraine. He also called fo for international help.

“Crimea is a part a Ukraine. If the peninsula is separated from Ukraine, it means that international treaties do not work, and world order collapses,” Chubarov added. “This is a threat not only for Ukraine but also for the whole world.”

During today’s the rally in Vinnytsya, Dashhin Hiumamedov, chairman of the National Council of Turkic Karapapak of Ukraine, said that three million Muslims who are living in Ukraine are ready to defend  the country’s territorial integrity.

“At the moment, the entire Muslim world is outraged that Russia wants to occupy the Crimea and Ukraine,” he said. “We all need to forget about differences and conflicts. Now we must defend our country.”

Muslims in Moscow warned Russian authorities against military aggression in Crimea. “Putin, if even one hair falls from the heads of Crimean Tatars, you will have your own Maidan on Red Square,” one protester in Kyiv said today.

Kyiv Post staff writer Nataliya Trach can be reached at trach@kyivpost.com