"I welcome today's declaration by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on not recognising the illegal annexation and occupation of Crimea," Mikser said in a statement released by the ministry. "Crimea is and will remain part of Ukraine."

According to the minister, the US' continuing leadership in this non-recognition policy is very important, and Wednesday's declaration reiterated once again that the US and the international community would never accept the annexation of Crimea.

"I would like to emphasise again the highly important principles in international relations: respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, and refraining from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity of any state," Mikser said.

"We must stick to the principles in place, because the security and future of Europe depends on them," he concluded. "We support Ukraine. Our support is unwavering."

The U.S. does not, and will not, recognize Russia's purported annexation of #Crimea. We stand together with allies & partners in our commitment to Ukraine and its territorial integrity, and have formalized our non-recognition policy in today's Crimea Declaration. pic.twitter.com/4sZnVyCOkB

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) July 26, 2018