Paul Kirby
Vladimir Putin initially denied having anything to do with Russia's capture of Crimea in February 2014, when mysterious masked commandos in unidentified green uniforms seized the local parliament and fanned out across the peninsula.
Those "little green men" marked the start of Russia's war on Ukraine, which culminated in the 2022 full-scale invasion.
The future of Crimea is now at the centre of President Donald Trump's peace plan and has prompted Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky to rule out recognising Russian control of the peninsula.
The exact terms of his plan have not been published, but reports suggest it would include the US recognising Crimea as a legal part of Russia - de jure in Latin.
For Trump, Ukraine's southern peninsula was "lost years ago" and "is not even a part of discussion" in peace talks.
But for Zelensky to renounce Crimea as an indivisible part of Ukraine would be unconscionable.
In the words of opposition MP Iryna Gerashchenko "territorial integrity and sovereignty is a red line for Ukraine and Ukrainians".
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