Ayla Bakkalli, the representative for Crimean Tatars at the United Nations, spoke to The World’s Marco Werman about what it has been like for Tatars to live under Russian occupation for the past seven years.
The self-declared prime minister of Crime is a wrestler, once sold umbrellas and cigarettes, and is accused of having worked for the mafia. In the last month, he organized a pro-Russian paramilitary force that quickly took charge when Russian forces intervened in Crimea.
The Russian move into Ukraine has surely put the Crimean peninsula in the media spotlight. But Crimea's also a place that's embedded in Russian popular culture and art. It's a place that has filled the imagination of artists, poets and writers for centuries.
The Crimean Tatars are just a small slice of Crimea's population, but their voices could make a difference in the Russia-Ukraine standoff. And Russia is courting them hard.
Despite Putin's claims to the contrary today, Russian soldiers in unmarked uniforms and vehicles are blocking Ukrainian bases in Crimea and demanding that Ukrainian soldiers hand over their weapons. And for the people, Russian passports are available for the asking.
Masked Russian troops have moved into Crimea, with unmarked uniforms and heavy arms. Some of the residents cheer them, while others fear them. And they may be the undoing of the delicate ethnic balance in Crimea.