President Zelensky: The War Must End With Liberation Of Crimea

JAKARTA - The war in Ukraine began with Crimea and must end with its liberation, says President Volodymyr Zelensky.

He spoke just hours after a series of explosions hit a Russian air base in the region, leaving one person dead.

President Zelensky did not mention the explosion, but in his evening address he touched on the region by saying: "Crimea is Ukraine and we will never give up."

"We will not forget that Russia's war against Ukraine began with the occupation of Crimea. "This Russian war began with Crimea and must end with Crimea, its liberation," President Zelensky stressed.

President Zelensky's remarks indicate he believes Ukraine must retake the peninsula before the war can end, although he has previously said differently on the matter.

Some time ago, President Zelensky indicated Ukraine could accept peace, if Russia returned to their position before February 24, meaning retaking Crimea would not be considered a condition.

Crimea is officially part of Ukraine, but was annexed by Russia in 2014 after a referendum that the international community deemed illegitimate. Many Ukrainians see this as the start of their war with Russia.

As previously reported, a series of explosions rocked the Saky military air base near Novofedorivka, in the west of Crimea on Tuesday. Footage on social media showed beachgoers running as the explosion occurred, with witnesses saying they had heard at least 12 explosions.

The Russian-appointed Crimean Ministry of Health said one civilian was killed and eight others injured.

Meanwhile, Russia's Defense Ministry insists the explosion was caused by ammunition detonating in a storage area, although this has not been independently verified.

Separately, Ukrainian Assistant President Mykhailo Podolyak denied that Ukraine was behind the blast, telling the online television channel Dozhd: "Of course not. What should we do with this?"

To note, any attack on Crimea by Ukraine will be taken very seriously by Moscow. Russia sounded the warning last month when former President Dmitry Medvedev threatened "Judgment Day will await" if Ukraine targets Crimea.