Crimea has a long and complex history, and it has been controlled by a number of different countries and empires over the course of its existence. The Crimean Peninsula was originally inhabited by a number of indigenous peoples, including the Scythians and the Goths. It was later conquered by the Mongols in the 13th century and became a part of the Golden Horde. In the late 18th century, Crimea was annexed by the Russian Empire, and it remained a part of Russia until 1954, when it was transferred to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic as a gesture of goodwill by Nikita Khrushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union at the time. After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Crimea became a part of the newly independent Ukraine. In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea, but this action has not been recognized by the international community, and most countries continue to consider Crimea to be a part of Ukraine.