Medal "For the Return of Crimea"
| Medal "For the Return of Crimea" | |
|---|---|
 Obverse of the medal | |
| Type | Campaign medal |
| Awarded for | Service in Crimea during the 2014 Russian annexation |
| Country | Russia |
| Presented by | Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation |
| Campaign(s) | Russo-Ukrainian War |
| Established | 21 March 2014[1] |
| First award | 24 March 2014 |
.png){kind=small} Ribbon of the medal | |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Medal "For Labour Valour" |
| Next (lower) | Medal "Mikhail Kalashnikov" |
The Medal "For the Return of Crimea" (Russian: медаль «За возвращение Крыма», romanized: medal "Za vozvrashcheniye Kryma") is a campaign medal of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation.[2] The existence of the award was also confirmed by Yaroslav Roshchupkin, an employee of the press service for the Central Military District.[3]
The medal was awarded to military and civilian personnel of the Russian Armed Forces for services and distinction displayed during the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, the 2014 Crimean status referendum, and the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation as the result of the referendum. The medal can also be awarded to other citizens of the Russian Federation and to foreign citizens for assistance in solving the tasks assigned to the Russian Armed Forces relating to these security measures taken in Crimea.[4]
On the reverse of the medal, the term of the campaign is indicated as follows: "20.02.14 – 18.03.14". The start date of the "return of Crimea" operation appears 20 February when Viktor Yanukovych was still in office as Ukraine"s head of state. In fact, only the next day President Yanukovych left Kyiv, and it was already 22 February 2014 when the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Resolution "On the dissociation of the President of Ukraine from fulfillment of constitutional powers and appointment of early presidential elections in Ukraine", used by Russia as a pretext for accusations of the alleged "unconstitutional coup in Ukraine". The fact that Crimea started its "return" to Russia two days before Yanukovych"s removal from power and his resignation from the post of the President of Ukraine can be considered as an indirect proof that Russia launched its operation to seize the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine on 20 February 2014.[5]
Similar medals
[edit]A similar award, the Medal "For the Liberation of the Crimea" (Russian: медаль «За освобождение Крыма», romanized: medal "Za osvobozhdeniye Kryma"), was awarded to head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov and Krasnodar Krai governor Alexander Tkachov, as well as the Night Wolves leader Alexander Zaldastanov for "support of Crimeans" in achieving "self-determination".[6]
There is also the Medal "For the Defence of Crimea" (Russian: медаль «За защиту Крыма», romanized: medal "Za zashchitu Kryma") instituted by the Russian head of Crimea Sergey Aksyonov on 30 March 2015.[7]
It was widely reported in the media when a "Crimea medal" was to be put on auction in Moscow on 13 April 2019 by Igor Girkin, a Russian militant commander involved in the war in Donbas. This medal, however, was not the one described above, but one made by a private initiative.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Хронологический перечень приказов Министра обороны Российской Федерации [Chronological list of orders of the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation]. mil.ru (in Russian). Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation. p. 424. Archived from the original on 20 April 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
- ^ Минобороны России учредило медаль "За возвращение Крыма" [Ministry of Defence of Russia established a medal "For the Return of Crimea"]. Gazeta.Ru (in Russian). 25 March 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
- ^ Yashin, Ilya; Shorina, Olga, eds. (May 2015). Putin. War: Based on Materials from Boris Nemtsov (PDF) (Report). Translated by Fitzpatrick, Catherine A. Moscow: Free Russia Foundation. p. 14. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
- ^ Приказ Министра обороны Российской Федерации от 21 марта 2014 г. № 160 «Об учреждении медали Министерства обороны Российской Федерации „За возвращение Крыма“» [Order of the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation of 21 March 2014 No. 160 "On the establishment of the medal of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation "For the Return of Crimea""]. sammler.ru (in Russian). 18 April 2014. Archived from the original on 23 April 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
- ^ Эксперты назвали 12 фактов, как медаль "За возвращение Крыма" подставила РФ [Experts named 12 facts on how the Medal "For the Return of Crimea" framed the Russian Federation]. Birzhevoy lider (in Russian). 21 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
- ^ Yegorov, Andrei (8 June 2014). Почему медали "За освобождение Крыма" получили Кадыров и Ткачев [Why Kadyrov and Tkachyov received the medals "For the Liberation of Crimea"] (in Russian). Echo of Moscow. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
- ^ Указ Главы Республики Крым от 30 марта 2015 года № 88-У "О знаке отличия Главы Республики Крым «Медаль „За защиту Крыма“»" [Decree of the Head of the Republic of Crimea of 30 March 30 2015 No. 88-U "On the insignia of the Head of the Republic of Crimea "Medal "For the Defence of Crimea"""] (PDF). rk.gov.ru (in Russian). Government of the Republic of Crimea. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
- ^ Synovitz, Ron (11 March 2019). "Onetime Russian Hero Selling Gold Crimea Medal Bearing "Despised" Putin". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 20 April 2022.