“But Crimea is not only a strategically important region, it is not only about our history, our traditions and Russian pride. Crimea, first and foremost, is its people… They are our pride.”
Striking: Putin was accompanied on stage by another presidential candidate, whom he had just defeated by a wide margin. With 87.9 percent of the vote, the result was unprecedented even by his standards.
Also read: Putin achieves ‘unparalleled success’ in presidential election
“Russia and Crimea, there is only one homeland. And I congratulate you on this tenth anniversary,” Nikolai Kharitonov, who came in second with 4 percent of the vote, said to his opponent. Number three Vladislav Davankov also praised Putin: “Dear friends, I will always remember the sense of pride I felt for my country and my president ten years ago, and I congratulate you on that.”
“Praise Russia,” Putin concluded the celebration, after which the Russian national anthem was sung by Putin and his opponents.
“Falls down a lot. General tv buff. Incurable zombie fan. Subtly charming problem solver. Amateur explorer.”
