MOSCOW, April 10 (RIA Novosti) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied that Russia covertly prepared for the reunification of Crimea last month, saying that the final decision was taken only after residents in the region clearly expressed their desire to rejoin Russia.
"I made the final decision only after I learned about the mood of the people. After all, we were not preparing for such a scenario,” he said.
He said that residents of Crimea and Sevastopol were polled about their expectations before the March 16 referendum on seceding from Ukraine and rejoining Russia. The polling data largely coincided with the results of the referendum, in which about 97 percent of voters supported reunification.
“Eventually, it became absolutely clear that we had chosen a correct course of action,” the Russian president said.
Crimea declared independence from Ukraine last month and signed a treaty to rejoin Russia on March 18. The reunification treaty was ratified by the Russian president and parliament the same week.
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