The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has proposed that the Ukrainian Parliament defines February 20, 2014 as the date of the start of the temporary occupation of Crimea, instead of March 27, 2014.

This is stipulated in draft law No. 2954 on amending some Ukrainian laws regarding the date of the temporary occupation. The draft law has been posted on the parliament's website.

"The Supreme Council of Crimea was actually seized on February 26, 2014 and Russian Armed Forces violated the procedure for passing the Ukrainian state border and stayed illegally in Ukrainian territory with the purpose of the further temporary occupation of the peninsula on February 20, 2014," reads an explanatory note to the draft.

The cabinet proposed that the provisions according to which the start of the temporary occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol city is the date when UN General Assembly resolution No. 68/262 of March 27, 2014 on supporting the territorial integrity of Ukraine took effect is removed from Article 12 of the law on the creation of the Crimea free economic zone and the specifics of carrying out economic operations in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea and Sevastopol city.