Turning the pages back...
July 30, 1987
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Thirty years ago, on July 30, 1987, the Soviet government accused United States diplomats of inciting demonstrations by Crimean Tatars calling for the return of their homeland. In Washington, the State Department responded by stating that such accusations were “absurd.”
Some 500 Crimean Tatars – mostly young people – called for the restoration of their ancestral homeland during a 24-hour protest near Red Square that began on July 25, and which unexpectedly had drawn no police retaliation. The protest culminated in a meeting on July 27 with Soviet President Andrei Gromyko to discuss their demands. One of the demonstrators’ demands was to meet with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Mr. Gromyko reportedly outlined the composition of a top-level commission to investigate their cause and requested that all 21 members of the delegation explain their complaints.