The United States has once again warned it may withdraw from the Russia-Ukraine peace talks, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying the US needed "concrete proposals" from both sides.
The future of Crimea appears to be a central issue in the current phase of negotiations, although Ukraine has made clear that surrendering the key Black Sea peninsula is non-negotiable.
Despite US President Donald Trump suggesting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is ready to give up Crimea, Ukraine's official stance remains unchanged.
Ukraine's presidential representative in Crimea, Olha Kuryshko, told RTÉ News that there can be no legal recognition of Crimea as Russian territory.
"Any talks regarding parts of Ukraine violate our constitution," she said.
Now based in Ukraine, the Office of the Permanent Representative of Ukraine in Crimea serves as the main channel for maintaining contact with residents and advocating for the region’s eventual return.
What is Crimea?
Crimea, a scenic Black Sea peninsula with a Mediterranean climate, is both a popular tourist destination and a logistics hub, holding deep symbolic weight for both countries.
Home to the Muslim Crimean Tatars for over 700 years, the region was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 18th century, with one of Russia's most important naval bases soon established in Sevastopol.
Under Soviet rule, the native Tatars were forcibly deported in 1944 by order of Joseph Stalin, and only permitted to return in the late 1980s.
In 1954, Crimea, then part of the Russian Soviet republic, was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR, remaining part of independent Ukraine after the USSR’s collapse.
Following the ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Russian president in 2014, Russia seized the peninsula.
A disputed referendum led to formal annexation, with Russian President Vladimir Putin declaring Crimea had "returned home".
The move was widely condemned by the UN, the US and the EU, which imposed sanctions.
Only a few countries, including North Korea and Sudan, have recognised the annexation.
Why is Crimea important to Ukraine and Russia?
A key hub in the Black Sea with substantial port infrastructure, Crimea is critical for military and trade dominance in the region.
By the time of its annexation, Crimea had been legally part of Ukraine for 60 years, becoming integral to the country’s identity and economy.
Mr Zelensky’s representative in Crimea, Olha Kuryshko, says the people living there remain Ukraine’s main concern.
"We have a responsibility to our citizens on occupied territories, even if we don’t have direct access to the land," Ms Kuryshko said.
For Mr Putin, Crimea was a major prize - his approval ratings soared to 86% in March 2014, up from 60% in 2008.
With millions of Russians nostalgic about their childhood holidays in Crimea, the mood was jubilant, even among some of Mr Putin’s critics.
However, it’s not only about reminiscence and imperial symbolism. For Russia, Crimea is a strategic launchpad for military operations.
It has served as a base for missile and drone attacks into Ukraine since 24 February 2022, when tens of thousands of troops were deployed from the peninsula into southern Ukraine.
Ms Kuryshko believes Mr Putin seeks absolute dominance in the Black Sea, viewing it as Russia’s "internal waters".
She argues the Russian fleet’s presence is "a threat, not only to Ukraine, but to all countries with access to the sea".
In the event of Ukraine joining the European Union, she adds, a Russian base so close to the bloc would be of high strategic value to the Kremlin.
The peninsula has been "completely militarised" over the past decade, according to Ukraine, with civilian hospitals converted into military facilities, leaving locals struggling to access basic healthcare.
Russia is also using Crimea to "illegally export grain" from recently occupied areas in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, according to Ukraine.
Ukraine says over two million tonnes were moved through ports like Sevastopol’s Grain Terminal, using a "shadow fleet" of ships that often sail under foreign flags to hide the cargo’s origin. At least 20 such vessels have been seized since 2022.
Russia-installed Crimean authorities accused Ukraine of "piracy" after Ukraine detained a cargo vessel sailing under an Asian flag last week.
Life under Russian rule
Russia and Russian-installed officials in Crimea have been touting economic successes, including large-scale investment in infrastructure and energy, the GDP growth of the region and the increase of median salary.
A Kremlin-aligned statistics agency claimed that 77% of Crimeans are satisfied with their lives.
Independent verification is difficult, however, as most independent media and investigative journalists have been driven out of the region.
Human rights violations remain a key concern for Ukraine and local and international rights groups.
Out of a pre-war population of around two million, more than half identified as ethnic Russians, while 24% were Ukrainian and 12% Tatar, according to Ukraine’s 2001 census.
Russia-backed Crimean authorities claim that learning Ukrainian is not an issue and can be arranged at parents’ request, but school administrators say there is "little demand".
Ms Kuryshko rejected Russia's claim that the peninsula was fully Russian-speaking at the time of annexation, noting that before 2014 many schools offered education in Ukrainian and Tatar.
That is no longer the case. Not a single Ukrainian-language school remains on the peninsula in 2025, Crimean human rights groups report.
Only 249 pupils are currently studying in Ukrainian – down from 13,000 in 2014.
Ukraine’s representative office in Crimea says it has received numerous complaints from parents whose requests for Ukrainian-language education were rejected, despite Russia's formal claims that such options are available.
"Everything is being done to erase Ukrainian national identity," Ms Kuryshko argues.
Residents face prosecution for dissent, Ukraine says – including for speaking Ukrainian or singing Ukrainian songs.
Citizens are fined under Article 280 of Russia’s criminal code for actions "aimed at discrediting the Russian army".
Ms Kuryshko recalls one case where a Ukrainian folk song played at a wedding resulted in the venue owners being forced to issue a public apology on camera.
Systemic human rights violations against Crimean Tatars have been documented and reported by the EU Commissioner for Human Rights and the US State Department.
Russian authorities have targeted Tatar religious institutions with raids, while the minority's leaders and activists faced criminal prosecution and imprisonment on politically motivated charges.
Russia has consistently denied any human rights violations.
In the latest report by its Commissioner for the Human Rights in Crimea from 2024, there was no mention of any cases of political persecution or ethnical discrimination.
The Kremlin also doesn’t recognise international judicial system or human rights organisation.
Last year, the European Court of Human Rights found Russia guilty of systemic violations of human rights on the peninsula in the "Crimean case".
But the Kremlin boycotted the hearings and adopted amendments stating that ECHR rulings issued after March 2022 are not enforceable in Russia.
Can Ukraine reclaim Crimea?
President Zelensky recently agreed with Donald Trump that retaking Crimea militarily is not realistic in the foreseeable future – but stressed the importance of continuing diplomatic efforts and international sanctions.
Ukraine, however, continues to follow its official policy of reintegration and de-occupation of the peninsula, Ms Kuryshko told RTÉ News.
In his recent interview with CBS, Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov was definitive on the peninsula’s future saying "it’s a done deal" and that Russia considers it an "integral part of its territory", and this is "not up for discussion" at any level.
As for what Crimeans themselves want, she says it is impossible to conduct a credible census under Russian occupation to gauge public sentiment.
The demographics have changed significantly over the 11 years of occupation, she notes, with between 600,000 and 800,000 Russians – including military personnel, police, and bureaucrats – believed to have been resettled to Crimea since 2014.
Nonetheless, strong support for Ukraine remains, Kyiv insists.
Hopes surged in 2022 after successful counterattacks and strikes on the strategic Kerch Bridge linking Crimea to mainland Russia.
That wave of optimism was met with a crackdown: over 1,300 charges of "discrediting the Russian army" have been filed since 2023.
Offences ranged from vandalising military offices to spoiling ballots during Russian-organised elections.
Resistance groups, such as Yellow Ribbon, the all-female Zla Mavka, and the Crimean Tatar-led Atesh, reportedly have over 8,000 active members.
Their focus includes gathering intelligence and tracking Russian military movements.
There is a mix of quiet despair - "Have we been forgotten?" - and determination among pro-Ukrainian Crimeans, who, Ms Kuryshko says, are "patiently waiting" for liberation after more than a decade of foreign rule.
Even those Crimeans who are ambivalent about Ukraine or Russia see clearer benefits in being part of Ukraine and Europe.
"They understand what it means to live in a totalitarian state, to be barred from travelling abroad or studying in Europe, while Ukraine moves closer to the EU," she argues.
Being isolated from the world is "not a future many Crimeans want," she adds, noting that many families are still trying to leave the occupied peninsula.
