President Putin has called the ann

The United States government has reiterated its condemnation of Russia’s annexation of Crimea and vowed that the sanctions imposed on Moscow will be maintained until the strategic Black Sea Peninsula is returned to Ukraine.

In a statement released by the acting US State Department spokesman, Mark Toner to mark the three-year anniversary of Russia’s takeover of Crimea, the US called for an immediate end to the illegal occupation by Moscow.

“Crimea is a part of Ukraine. The United States again condemns the Russian occupation of Crimea and calls for its immediate end,” Toner said.

“Our Crimea-related sanctions will remain in place until Russia returns control of the peninsula to Ukraine.” He added.

The statement also went further to say that the United States does not recognize the March 16, 2014 referendum that paved way for the annexation, nor the annexation itself, describing it as a “continued violation of international law,” while reaffirming the United States support and commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Russia took over the Ukranian peninsula following a military intervention and a hastily-organised referendum that was widely condemned and rejected by the international community.

The US and European Union (EU) reacted to Moscow’s annexation of Crimea by imposing economic sanctions on both Russia and Putin’s “inner circle” members.