![Russia’s annexation of Crimea](https://assets.kyivindependent.com/content/images/2024/02/gettyimages-479264127-1-1671491403kcap6.jpeg)
Russia’s annexation of Crimea
Russia invaded Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in February 2014 amid the deadliest days of the EuroMaidan Revolution that eventually ousted pro-Russian ex-President Viktor Yanukovych. While Yanukovych's pro-Russian regime was murdering protesters in downtown Kyiv, around 30,000 Russian troops crossed into Crimea, taking hold of the peninsula by early March 2014.