Russian President Putin celebrated his successful re-election during the anniversary of the annexation of Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula that was annexed in a military operation ten years ago. “All credit to Russia,” Putin said in Moscow’s Red Square.

On February 27, 2014, heavily armed soldiers wearing uniforms without any distinctive insignia occupied the parliament building in the capital, Simferopol. A few weeks later, Russia annexed Crimea, after the Russian-speaking population voted to join Russia in a sham referendum.

In a short speech, Putin referred to Crimea as an “unsinkable aircraft carrier”:

The other candidates in the unfree elections, who had no chance, stood loyally with Putin on the stage. With his new six-year term, Putin, 71 years old, will become the longest-serving Russian leader in more than 200 years.

During the meeting in Red Square, Putin declared the Donbass region and other occupied territories of Ukraine as “New Russia.” He said that new railway lines were being built and that the occupied territories had “expressed their desire to return to their original families.”

The annexation of Crimea and other occupied territories of Ukraine is not internationally recognized. Ukrainian armed forces regularly target Russian targets in Crimea with missiles and drones.