4. Emphasises the need for the EU and its Member States to speak to Russia with one united voice and to support the right of a united Ukraine to determine its future freely; welcomes, therefore, and strongly supports, the joint statement of the extraordinary European Council of 6 March 2014 that condemned the Russian acts of aggression and supported the territorial integrity, unity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine; calls for close transatlantic cooperation on steps towards a resolution of the crisis; 5. Recalls that in the nationwide independence referendum held in Ukraine in 1991, the majority of the Crimean population voted in support of independence; 6. Stresses its conviction that the establishment of a constructive dialogue is the best way forward for resolving any conflict and for long-term stability in Ukraine; praises the Ukraine Government’s responsible, measured and restrained handling of this severe crisis, in which the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country is at stake; calls on the international community to stand firmly by and support Ukraine; 7. Rejects Russia’s stated objective of protecting the Russian-speaking population in Crimea as completely unfounded, as it has not faced – and does not face – any discrimination whatsoever; strongly rejects the defamation of protesters against Yanukovych’s policy as fascists by Russian propaganda; 8. Calls for a peaceful solution to the current crisis and full respect for the principles of, and obligations laid down under, international law; takes the view that the situation must be contained and further de-escalated with a view to avoiding a military confrontation in Crimea; 9. Underlines the utmost importance of international observation and mediation; calls on the EU institutions and Member States to be ready to exhaust every possible diplomatic and political avenue and work tirelessly with all relevant international organisations, such as the UN, the OSCE and the Council of Europe, to secure a peaceful solution, which must be based on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine; calls, therefore, for the deployment of a fully fledged OSCE monitoring mission in Crimea; 10. Welcomes the initiative taken to establish a Contact Group under the auspices of the OSCE, but regrets the fact that armed groups hindered the entry into Crimea of the OSCE observer mission on 6 March 2014; criticises the Russian authorities and the self-proclaimed Crimean authorities for not cooperating with the OSCE observer mission or granting its members full and safe access to the region; 11. Deplores the fact that the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to Crimea was forced to cut his mission short following violent threats against him; 12. Takes the view that certain aspects of the agreement of 21 February 2014, which was negotiated by three foreign affairs ministers on behalf of the EU but broken by Yanukovych, who failed to honour it by signing the new constitutional law, could still be helpful with a view to exiting the current impasse; takes the view, however, that nobody can negotiate and/or accept solutions that undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and reaffirms the fundamental right of the Ukrainian people to determine their country's

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