Ukraine Won't 'Barter' Territory for NATO, EU Status: Crimea Envoy

Ukraine will not cede territory in exchange for guaranteed NATO or European Union membership, Kyiv's permanent representative for Crimea has told Newsweek, as Ukrainian troops press a gradual counteroffensive Kyiv and its Western backers hope will prove pivotal.

Tamila Tasheva—who since April 2022 has served as President Volodymyr Zelensky's envoy for the occupied peninsula—said in an interview that while the timeline of Crimean liberation remains unclear, the overall plan is not in question.

"I wouldn't want to speculate on the exact timeframes," Tasheva said. "There are, of course, various possible scenarios of returning Crimea, including one of cutting off the land corridor to Crimea from Russia. That would mean the Russian military contingent on the peninsula would be isolated.

"We know that it most likely won't be easy, they will be putting up resistance, though Russians fleeing in a latest 'gesture of goodwill' cannot be ruled out either."

"Only we, the Ukrainian people, can decide what is to become of our territories, and an absolute majority of the population supports returning all the occupied regions without exception. Ukraine will not give up, and will not barter its own territorial integrity for some promise of NATO or EU ascension," Tasheva said.

Ukrainian forces will have to fight through up to 100 miles of occupied territory to reach the narrow Isthmus of Perekop, which forms the gateway to the peninsula. Russian forces in occupied southern Ukraine have had several months to prepare a network of defensive positions to stop them, and those on Crimea have had almost a decade to do the same.

Foreign observers—among them Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley—have warned that full liberation of all land occupied by Moscow may not be possible. But Ukrainian leaders have consistently said they intend to eject all Russian troops per Ukraine's 1991 internationally recognized borders. Western officials have also expressed concern that Moscow might resort to nuclear weapons to retain control of Crimea.

Tasheva said she would urge any skeptics to "respect the UN charter, and to support reinstating the internationally accepted borders for Ukraine. We are liberating our own territories, be it Crimea, or the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, and we will continue to do so.

"While we had discussions about political and diplomatic means of reinstating our borders, and our president offered his own peace plan, we also understand that the context has transformed dramatically since Russia's invasion."

There is no sign of renewed peace talks almost 18 months into Russia's full-scale invasion. Moscow's forces appear unable to prosecute effective offensive operations but are exhibiting dogged defense against Ukraine's counteroffensive in the south and east of the country.

Kyiv's Western partners have repeatedly committed to backing Ukraine for "as long as it takes." Still, the specter of negotiations—and subsequent Ukrainian territorial concessions—has loomed throughout the full-scale invasion.

Czech President Petr Pavel said at this week's NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, that 2023 represents Ukraine's "window of opportunity," after which weather and political conditions will mean renewed pressure for talks.

Crimea's 'Korean Scenario'

Tasheva said any negotiations "would be a waste of time" while Russia "continues to commit war crimes and genocide in Ukraine." Newsweek has contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry by email to request comment.

Likewise, any new referendum or power-sharing deal regarding Crimea is not acceptable to Kyiv, Tasheva said. "We are not currently entertaining any kind of frozen conflict or referendum scenarios, because these are our territories and as President Zelensky affirms, our vision of the future only features a complete return to our internationally accepted borders, the only question is within what timeframe," she said.

"All this wishful thinking and theorizing about possible 'Korean scenarios,' some kind of grand bargain involving Crimea for NATO, or referendums is not even under consideration. Because all that would do is give Russia more time to regroup, re-arm and then continue with its aggression towards us."

"We've had international guarantees or 'protections' before, and this time they simply wouldn't suffice. Not just because it is internationally accepted Ukrainian land. Not just because our constitution does not permit 'local' referendums, only a federal one. It's a matter for the whole country to decide. But also because Russia is committing the crime of colonization, just like it has done for centuries," Tasheva said.

"It is bringing its own citizens and encouraging them to move to the occupied areas, so obviously the makeup of the population is shifting dramatically; and in Crimea has been since 2014.

"It simply wouldn't be appropriate to give these 'newcomers' the right to vote on the future of our territories, especially Crimea. And even those who are native to the peninsula have been living under the heavy influence of Russian state propaganda and lack of civil liberties for years, which would inevitably inform their decision making.

"What we need to do is to 'decolonize' these territories, and undo years of brainwashing—a sort of 'cognitive demining,' which could take years. And only after that the question of any kind of referendum can be raised."