Russia said today that it will not hand back Crimea to Ukraine or discuss the matter with foreign partners. This came after the White House said US President Donald Trump expected the annexed Black Sea peninsula to be returned. Moscow says, an overwhelming majority of Crimeans voted to become part of Russia in a 2014 referendum wanting protection from what the Kremlin cast as an illegal coup in Kiev.<br/><br/>Ukraine says, the referendum was a sham held at gunpoint after Russian troops illegally annexed the peninsula, that Russia-friendly president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted by people power, and that Moscow should return Crimea.<br/><br/>The 2014 annexation prompted the United States and the European Union to impose sanctions on Russia, plunging Western relations with the Kremlin to their worst level since the Cold War.

Russia said today that it will not hand back Crimea to Ukraine or discuss the matter with foreign partners. This came after the White House said US President Donald Trump expected the annexed Black Sea peninsula to be returned. Moscow says, an overwhelming majority of Crimeans voted to become part of Russia in a 2014 referendum wanting protection from what the Kremlin cast as an illegal coup in Kiev.<br/><br/>Ukraine says, the referendum was a sham held at gunpoint after Russian troops illegally annexed the peninsula, that Russia-friendly president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted by people power, and that Moscow should return Crimea.<br/><br/>The 2014 annexation prompted the United States and the European Union to impose sanctions on Russia, plunging Western relations with the Kremlin to their worst level since the Cold War.