SEVASTOPOL, Crimea (AP) — President Vladimir Putin has hailed Crimea’s incorporation into Russia.
Putin made a speech Friday in the city of Sevastopol on his first trip to the Black Sea peninsula since Russia annexed it from Ukraine in March.
Putin watched a parade of Russian navy ships and a flyby of Russian aircraft marking the Victory Day commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.
Ukraine has condemned Putin’s visit as trampling on international law.
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APPHOTO XEL107: Ukrainian police guard a government office during a Victory Day celebration rally in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Friday, May 9, 2014. Putin’s surprise call on Wednesday to delay the referendum in eastern Ukraine appeared to reflect Russia’s desire to distance itself from the separatists as it bargains with the West over a settlement to the Ukrainian crisis. But insurgents in the Russian-speaking east defied Putin’s call and said they would go ahead with the referendum. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) (9 May 2014)
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