Putin: Sevastopol was legally always a part of Russia
During a meeting with the Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Sevastopol, “was legally always a part of Russia.”
Sobyanin noted that Moscow and Sevastopol are sister cities, and “at all times, even when Sevastopol was not a part of Russia,” the Russian capital always helped it. Putin interrupted Sobyanin, saying that Sevastopol formally has always been a Russian city.
“Sevastopol has always been legally part of Russia. It was a city under central control even during the transfer, the illegal transfer, of the Crimea from the RSFSR to the Ukrainian SSR. It was illegal because the decision was made by the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR of Ukraine and then approved by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. However, by law, it needed approval from the Supreme Soviets of the Republics and the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. However, even during this technically illegal process, Sevastopol was simply forgotten, and it was not transferred from the RSFSR to Ukraine. So, formally and legally, it was always a part of Russia,” declared Putin.
The Crimea was transferred to Ukraine in 1954 in accordance with the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR. Simultaneously with the Crimean region, Sevastopol became part of the Ukrainian SSR, and it was confirmed in the Ukrainian SSR constitution in 1978.
Earlier, Putin confirmed that the salary in the Crimea is lower than the average in Russia. According to him, for the Crimeans to feel like the rest of Russians, a bit more time is needed.