Crimean Tatar Reshat Ametov was the first victim of Russian aggression in Ukraine. The President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko recalled the fact in his speech at the UN General Assembly in New York on February 20.

The Head of state told that on March 3, 2014, Ametov came out on a peaceful one-man protest against Russian aggression.

The Ukrainian leader noted that the so-called “referendum” in the Crimea was held at gunpoint.

Poroshenko recalled visiting the peninsula in February 2014. “I saw with my own eyes that the building of the Crimean parliament was surrounded by the Russian military. This vote (for holding a” referendum “) had no relation to the free will of the people,” he said.

From the UN rostrum, Poroshenko spoke about the militarization of the Crimea, to which Russia is deploying its large-scale military forces.

He went on saying that, in the occupied Crimea, according to data as at summer of 2018, there were 32 thousand Russian soldiers, 88 artillery systems, 52 multiple launch rocket systems, six warships and submarines equipped with cruise missiles.

During his speech, Poroshenko called on the UN to deprive Russia of its veto power at the United Nations.

Source: QHA