Lithuania's Jakubauskas appointed to Ukraine's Crimea de-occupation, reintegration council

  • 2023-05-29
  • BNS/TBT Staff

VILNIUS - Adas Jakubauskas, former chairman of the Union of Lithuanian Tatar Communities and an affiliate professor of Mykolas Romeris University, has been appointed to the Advisory Council on the De-occupation and Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol, set up by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Jakubauskas was appointed after being nominated by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, with the approval of the Ukrainian president.

The council was set up in 2022 under Zelensky's decree to facilitate the process of de-occupation, reintegration and restoration of the territorial integrity of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, temporarily occupied by Russia, as well as to coordinate the removal of the consequences of the temporary occupation and the payment of compensation.

The Ukrainian president updated the council's composition in the middle of May.

The council includes members of Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada, representatives of the Ukrainian executive, security, public order and law enforcement officials, representatives of the Crimean Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people and foreign experts. It has 43 members in total.

According to the decree, in cooperation with its foreign partners, the council will contribute to proposals on the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity, the protection of the rights and interests of its citizens, the elimination of damages caused to the state and its citizens and compensation for it, and the improvement of legislation.

The Crimean peninsula, which belongs to Ukraine, was annexed by Russia in 2014 following a so-called referendum. Kyiv or the West do not recognize the results of this referendum.