Kyiv requests Georgia, other “friendly states”, to accept Crimean Tatars to help them escape Russia’s military mobilisation

Iryna Vereshchuk, a Ukrainian deputy prime minister and minister for reconciliation of temporary occupied territories, on Thursday asked the Georgian government and authorities of Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania to allow Crimean Tatars to cross into their countries to escape the recently announced partial military mobilisation by Russia for its ongoing war against Ukraine. 

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Making the appeal via her Telegram channel, the Ukrainian official stressed Russians had begun to “massively mobilise” Crimean Tatars and other indigenous peoples of the currently occupied Crimea to force them to participate in the war on their side.

It is obvious that such actions carry the signs of genocide. Crimean Tatars and other indigenous peoples of the Ukrainian Crimea are trying with all their might to evade mobilisation into the enemy’s army”, said Vereshchuk. 

She also said Tatars were trying to leave for countries “friendly to Ukraine” to escape the development, stressing that in some cases Polish, Latvian, Estonian, Lithuanian and Georgian border guards had refused their entry to the countries. 

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We appeal to the governments of Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Georgia with a request to pay attention to the specified problem. We ask our friendly countries to facilitate the departure of Crimean Tatars and other indigenous peoples of Crimea from the territory of the Ukrainian Crimea and Russia to third countries. Now, the support of the indigenous peoples of Crimea from the international community is more important than ever”, Vereshchuk said. 

Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, while the country announced the partial military mobilisation last Wednesday in a bid to recruit at least 300,000 for its war against Ukraine, with Kyiv responding by saying the move pointed to a “failure” of Russia’s professional army and the “inevitable defeat of occupiers”.