Russia Allowed to Have 25,000 Troops in Crimea Since 1999 … And Other Facts You Didn’t Know!

• Russia allowed to have 25,000 troops in Crimea since 1999…and other facts you didn’t know! 
  by http://rt.com/ 
  Ukraine’s statement at the UN that 16,000 Russian soldiers have been deployed to Crimea has caused a frenzy among Western media which chooses to ignore that those troops have been there since the late 1990s in accordance with a Kiev-Moscow agreement.
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  Western media describes the situation in the Autonomous Republic  of Crimea as if a full-scale Russian invasion were under way,  with headlines like:
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  “Ukraine says Russia sent 16,000 troops  to Crimea” and “Ukraine crisis deepens as Russia sends  more troops into Crimea,” as well as “What can Obama do  about Russia’s invasion of Crimea?”  
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  It seems they have chosen to simply ignore the fact that those  Russian troops have been stationed in Crimea for over a decade. Russia’s representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, reminded on  Tuesday that the deal surrounding the Black Sea Fleet allows  Russia to station a contingent of up to 25,000 troops in Ukraine.  However, US and British media have mostly chosen to turn a deaf  ear.
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  Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov underlined that the  country’s military “strictly executes the agreements which  stipulate the Russian fleet’s presence in Ukraine, and follows  the stance and claims coming from the legitimate authority in  Ukraine and in this case the legitimate authority of the  Autonomous Republic Crimea as well.”  
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  So here are the facts, numbers, and details of this long-standing  (but rarely cited) deal:  
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  1) The Black Sea Fleet has been disputed between  Russia and Ukraine since the collapse of the Soviet Union back in  1991.  
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  2) In 1997, the sides finally managed to find  common ground and signed three agreements determining the fate of  the military bases and vessels in Crimea. Russia has received  81.7 percent of the fleet’s ships after paying the Ukrainian  government a compensation of US$526.5 million.  
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  3) Moscow also annually writes off $97.75  million of Kiev’s debt for the right to use Ukrainian waters and  radio frequency resources, and for the environmental impact  caused by the Black Sea Fleet’s operations.  
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  4) According to the initial agreement, the  Russian Black Sea Fleet was to stay in Crimea until 2017, but the  deal was later prolonged for another 25 years.  
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  5) The 1997 deal allows the Russian navy to have  up to 25,000 troops, 24 artillery systems with a caliber smaller  than 100 mm, 132 armored vehicles, and 22 military planes on  Ukrainian territory.
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