Russian Prime Minister Mocks Kiev’s Protest Over Crimea Visit

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday he "appreciates" the fact that the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is closely monitoring his movements on the Russian territory and shows interest in the development of the Russian region of Crimea.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Ukraine's Foreign Ministry has sent a note to the Russian Foreign Ministry protesting the trip of Medvedev to Crimea on April 27. The Ukrainian ministry described the visit of the Russian prime minister as a deliberate act "aimed at destabilizing the bilateral relations."

Also, the ministry demanded Moscow to end the practice of government officials' visits to Crimea and Sevastopol.

"I appreciate that the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is watching my movements around the country and is interested in the development of the Russian Crimea. I think that Russia's Foreign Ministry could comment on the trips of the Ukrainian leadership to [Ukraine's] Lviv and Kharkiv regions as well," Medvedev wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday.

Crimea seceded from Ukraine and reunified with Russia in March 2014. The decision was made through a referendum, in which more than 96 percent of the peninsula's population voted to rejoin Russia.

On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Crimea's reunification with Russia 60 years after it was transferred to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic "an element of historic justice."