Crimean Tatars appealed to the presidents of Turkey, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan to help prevent the secession of Crimea from Ukraine, reports Espreso.TV, citing Azerbaijani news outlet haqquin.az.

In an interview with haqquin.az on March 6, the leader of the Crimean Tatars and former head of the Mejlis Mustafa Dzhemilev explained:

“Our people were once expelled from their native lands,” he said. “We do not want a repetition of this tragedy. Therefore we appeal for help to Ilham Aliyev (president of Azerbaijan), Abdullah Gül (president of Turkey ) and Nursultan Nazarbayev (president of Kazakhstan). Do not abandon your Crimean brothers and sisters at this difficult time. We ask the entire world to help us. Exile and repression await us in Russia once again,” he said.