Transfer of Crimea in the Soviet Union

In 1954, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet transferred the Crimean Oblast to the Ukrainian SSR from the Russian SFSR. The territory had been recognized within the Soviet Union as having "close ties" to the Ukrainian SSR, and the transfer itself commemorated the Union of Russia and Ukraine Tercentenary. Amidst the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Ukrainian SSR seceded from the Soviet Union and Ukraine continued to exercise sovereignty over the territory as the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. For just over two decades after 1991, Russia did not dispute the Ukrainian administration in Crimea, but retracted this stance on 18 March 2014, when Crimea was annexed by Russia after coming under Russian military occupation. The Soviet-era transfer of Crimea has remained a topic of contention between the two countries in light of the Russo-Ukrainian War, as the Russian government has stated that the Ukrainians must recognize Russia's sovereignty over the territory as part of any negotiated settlement to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in 2022.