A referendum on sovereignty was held in the

Crimean Oblast During the existence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, different governments existed within the Crimean Peninsula. From 1921 to 1936, the government in the Crimean Peninsula was known as the Crimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic; ...

of the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

on 20 January 1991,Crimean Tatars: Reflections On “Autonomy” Day
UNPO two months before the 1991 All-Union referendum. Voters were asked whether they wanted to re-establish the

Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic During the existence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, different governments existed within the Crimean Peninsula. From 1921 to 1936, the government in the Crimean Peninsula was known as the Crimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic; ...

, which had been abolished in 1945. The proposal was approved by 94% of voters.

Background

The

Crimean ASSR During the existence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, different governments existed within the Crimean Peninsula. From 1921 to 1936, the government in the Crimean Peninsula was known as the Crimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic; ...

was originally created in 1921, as part of the

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

.Sergei Lavrov defends Russia's position on Ukraine
Euronews, 3 March 2014 Crimea was invaded by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and when the region was reclaimed by the USSR in 1944, the

Crimean Tatars , flag = Flag of the Crimean Tatar people.svg , flag_caption = Flag of Crimean Tatars , image = Love, Peace, Traditions.jpg , caption = Crimean Tatars in traditional clothing in front of the Khan's Palace ...

and other ethnic groups were

deported Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...

to Central Asia, and the ASSR was dissolved in 1945 with Crimea becoming an

oblast An oblast (; ; Cyrillic (in most languages, including Russian and Ukrainian): , Bulgarian: ) is a type of administrative division of Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Ukraine, as well as the Soviet Union and the Kingdom of ...

of the Russian SSR.Maria Drohobycky (1995) ''Crimea: Dynamics, Challenges and Prospects'', Rowman & Littlefield, p40 On 5 February 1954, it was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR. During the collapse of the Soviet Union at the start of the 1990s, the Russian SFSR declared itself sovereign on 12 June 1990 and the Ukrainian SSR declared itself sovereign on 16 July 1990. In September 1990, the Soviet of People's Deputies of the

called for the restoration of the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic together with the previous level of autonomy that the peninsula had enjoyed under the ASSR. The referendum did not just call for the restoration for the ASSR, but further called for Crimea to be a participant in the

New Union Treaty The New Union Treaty (russian: link=no, Новый союзный договор, Novyy soyuznyy dogovor) was a draft treaty that would have replaced the 1922 Treaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Treaty on the Crea ...

– an ultimately futile attempt by

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

to reconstitute the USSR. This would have meant that Crimea would have been a sovereign subject of the renewed USSR and separate from the Ukrainian SSR.Russians in the Former Soviet Republics
by

Pål Kolstø Paul () is a common masculine given name in countries and ethnicities with a Christian heritage (Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism) and, beyond Europe, in Christian religious communities throughout the world. Paul – or its variation ...

Indiana University Press Indiana University Press, also known as IU Press, is an academic publisher founded in 1950 at Indiana University that specializes in the humanities and social sciences. Its headquarters are located in Bloomington, Indiana. IU Press publishes 140 ...

, 1995,

Decision on carrying out referendum (text)

* Temporary resolution about referendum and order of carrying it out on territory of

of the

is to be approved (annex #1) * Carry out referendum on 20 January 1991 * Create a commission in organization of the referendum consisting of 29 people (annex #2) * Appeal to Supreme Councils of the RSFSR, Ukrainian, Uzbek, Tajik, Kirgiz, and Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republics to render a necessary cooperation in carrying out the referendum among the Crimean Tatars and other people who were deported out of the Crimean Oblast and currently reside on territory of the mentioned republics * The Oblast Executive Committee must review the issue of allocating necessary funds for carrying out the referendum and make an expert analysis of the forecasted social and economic development of Crimea * Consider expedient to find ways of participating in preparation for the

new Union treaty The New Union Treaty (russian: link=no, Новый союзный договор, Novyy soyuznyy dogovor) was a draft treaty that would have replaced the 1922 Treaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Treaty on the Crea ...

both people deputies of the USSR and the UkrSSR elected from Crimean Oblast as well as the regional council's deputies * To recommend for the Regional Tele- and Radio Committee and editors of regional, cities and districts newspapers widely publicize all activities in preparation and carrying out the referendum * The present decision is to be published in regional newspapers "Krymskaya Pravda" and "Sovetskiy Krym"

Results

Aftermath

Following the referendum, the

Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR The Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR (Ukrainian: Верховна Рада Української РСР, tr. ''Verkhovna Rada Ukrayins'koyi RSR''; Russian: Верховный Совет Украинской ССР, tr. ''Verkhovnyy Sovet Uk ...

passed the law "On Restoration of the Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialistic Republic as part of USSR" on 12 February 1991, restoring Crimea's autonomous status. In September 1991, the Crimean parliament declared state sovereignty for Crimea as a constituent part of the Ukraine. It has been alleged that the Crimean parliament did not have the authority to make this decision, because according to USSR law, "On the procedure for resolving issues related to the withdrawal of a union republic from the USSR" from (3 April 1990) this issue could only be resolved via a referendum.

References

{{Crimean elections 1991 referendums 1991 in the Soviet Union 1991 elections in Ukraine Referendums in the Soviet Union Referendums in Crimea Referendums in Ukraine Sovereignty referendums Crimea in the Soviet Union Crimean Oblast