The Dutch parliament has officially recognized the deportation of Crimean Tatars in 1944 as genocide. The corresponding resolution was supported by the lower house during the vote.
Netherlands Recognizes Deportation of Crimean Tatars as Genocide
The document speaks of the mass deportation of Crimean Tatars, which took place by order of the Soviet government in 1944. The authors of the resolution note that this deportation, during which more than 190 thousand people were taken from the peninsula, has all the characteristics of genocide according to modern international standards.
The resolution also mentions that since Russia began occupying Crimea in 2014, Crimean Tatars have again become targets for repression, with many being groundlessly arrested, tortured, or going missing. The document notes that Russia “is very likely continuing its policy of genocide” against the Crimean Tatar people.
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Dutch MPs have called on the government to reach out to other EU countries to ensure that recognition of the crime occurs simultaneously in as many countries as possible.
Ukraine's reaction in support of the Netherlands
After the adoption of the resolution, Advisor to the President of Ukraine Andriy Sybiga thanked the Dutch Parliament for this decision.
“This is a powerful gesture of solidarity with the Crimean Tatar people, who are still being persecuted during the temporary occupation of Ukrainian Crimea,” he wrote on social media.
Andrei Sibiga stressed that recognition of this historical injustice is crucial not only for establishing truth and justice, but also for preventing future crimes.
The Netherlands became the seventh country in the world, besides Ukraine, to officially recognize the deportation of the Crimean Tatars as genocide. Lithuania, Latvia, Canada, Poland, Estonia and the Czech Republic have done so before.
