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Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Philip Breedlove has issued a warning about the build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine’s border.
US Air Force General Philip Breedlove said NATO was in particular concerned about the threat to Moldova’s Trans-Dniester region.
Russia said its forces east of Ukraine complied with international agreements.
The build-up has been allied with Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, following the removal of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow president.
Moscow formally annexed Crimea after the predominantly ethnic-Russian region held a referendum which backed joining the Russian Federation.
Kiev and the West have condemned the vote as “illegal”.
Russian flags have now been hoisted at 189 Ukrainian military units and facilities in Crimea, the Interfax news agency reports.
Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Philip Breedlove has issued a warning about the build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine’s border
On Sunday, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council chief Andriy Parubiy told a big rally in Kiev: “The aim of [President Vladimir] Putin is not Crimea, but all of Ukraine… His troops massed at the border are ready to attack at any moment.”
The comments by Gen. Philip Breedlove came at an event held by the German Marshall Fund think-tank in Brussels.
He said: “The [Russian] force that is at the Ukrainian border now to the east is very, very sizeable and very, very ready.”
He added: “There is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of Ukraine to run to Trans-Dniester if the decision was made to do that and that is very worrisome.
“Russia is acting much more like an adversary than a partner.”
Trans-Dniester is a narrow strip of land between Dniester River and Ukraine’s south-western border and it proclaimed independence from Moldova in 1990.
The international community has not recognized its self-declared statehood.
As Crimea was annexed, the Trans-Dniester Supreme Soviet sent a request asking to join the Russian Federation.
On Sunday, Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov told the Itar-Tass agency: “The Russian Defense Ministry is in compliance with all international agreements limiting the number of troops in the border areas with Ukraine.”
Russia’s ambassador to the EU warned the US against sending troops or military aid to Ukraine, saying it would be a “grave mistake”.
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One hundred international monitors will be sent to Ukraine, after Russian diplomats dropped their objections.
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), will send advance teams within 24 hours to areas including the violence-hit south-eastern areas.
But the monitoring team is not expected to go to Crimea, which was taken over by Russia last month.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law formalizing Crimea’s annexation on Friday, despite EU and US sanctions.
The 57-member OSCE reached a deal on Friday evening.
The Vienna-based group said that initially 100 civilian observers would deploy for six months in nine regions of Ukraine.
Up to 400 extra personnel could be deployed if necessary.
The areas the monitors are due to visit include Odessa, Donetsk, Dnepropetrovsk, and Luhansk, which have been recently rocked by clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian activists.
The situation remains tense on the long Ukrainian-Russian border
“The decision itself calls for monitors to be deployed within 24 hours,” said Daniel Baer, the US ambassador to the OSCE.
The US said in a statement that “it is clear that with the adoption of this decision this mission has a mandate to work in Crimea and in all other parts of Ukraine”.
But Russian envoy Andrey Kelin responded by saying that Crimea had now become part of Russia and therefore the mission had “no mandate” to go there.
Western diplomats had blamed Russia for several failed attempts to agree such a mission in recent days.
Earlier this month OSCE monitors had to abandon their visit to Crimea after warning shots were fired at the border.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Friday’s deal was “not the end of the crisis”.
Earlier on Friday, the EU added 12 people to an existing list of 21 officials involved in Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
They include Deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin and two close aides of Vladimir Putin, Sergey Glazyev and Vladislav Surkov.
The speakers of Russia’s two houses of parliament, Valentina Matviyenko and Sergei Naryshkin – both at Vladimir Putin’s side as he signed the Crimea law – were also included.
While the list targets several figures close to Vladimir Putin, it does not hit his inner circle as hard as the sanctions announced by the US on Thursday.
In retaliation, Russia ordered travel bans and asset freezes for nine prominent US officials and lawmakers.
Senator John McCain, one of those targeted, joked in a tweet that he would have to cancel his spring break in Siberia.
Vladimir Putin said Moscow would not retaliate for the latest EU sanctions – although the Russian foreign ministry said there would be a response.
In Crimea itself, forces allied to Russia have been seizing Ukrainian ships and taking over military bases.
The new authorities in Crimea have invited those serving in the Ukrainian forces on the peninsula to switch sides and join Russian forces.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law formalizing the takeover of Crimea from Ukraine, despite fresh sanctions from the EU and the US.
The EU’s latest measures target 12 people involved in Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Earlier, Ukraine and the EU signed an accord forging closer political ties.
Separately, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has agreed to send monitors to Ukraine, after Russia dropped objections.
The six-month mission will initially consist of 100 international civilian monitors, who will be employed in nine regions of Ukraine – including the south-eastern areas rocked by violence between pro-Ukraine and pro-Russian activists.
Vladimir Putin has signed a law formalizing the takeover of Crimea from Ukraine (photo Reuters)
The observers will not go to Crimea but German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the decision was “a step that helps to support our de-escalation efforts”.
Western diplomats had blamed Russia for several failed attempt to agree such a mission to help defuse the tense situation.
In Brussels, EU leaders also said they would step up efforts to reduce energy dependency on Russia.
The EU’s new sanctions add to an existing list of 21 officials affected by travel bans and asset freezes.
They include Deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin and two close aides of Vladimir Putin, Sergei Glazyev and Vladislav Surkov.
The speakers of Russia’s two houses of parliament, Valentina Matviyenko and Sergei Naryshkin – both at Vladimir Putin’s side as he signed the Crimea law – are also included.
While the list targets several figures close to the Russian president, it does not hit his inner circle as hard as the sanctions announced by the US on Thursday.
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European Union leaders have signed an agreement on closer relations with Ukraine, in a show of support following Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Ukraine’s interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and the EU signed the deal in Brussels.
Pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych’s abandonment of the deal had led to deadly protests, his removal and Russia taking over Crimea.
On Friday, Russia’s upper house unanimously approved the treaty on Crimea joining the Russian Federation.
The EU Association Agreement is designed to give Ukraine’s interim leadership economic and political support.
EU President Herman Van Rompuy said in a statementthat the accord “recognizes the aspirations of the people of Ukraine to live in a country governed by values, by democracy and the rule of law”.
Ukraine’s interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and the EU signed the deal in Brussels (photo AP)
The move comes hours after the EU broadened its sanctions over Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
It added 12 individuals to an earlier list of 21 who now face asset freezes and travel bans.
The US on Thursday added to its own list and also targeted Rossiya Bank.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday the international sanctions were “absolutely unlawful”.
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin said after talks with officials in Moscow that Russia would not take an immediate reciprocal action.
“I think we should refrain from taking steps in response for now,” Interfax quoted Vladimir Putin as saying.
However, Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev said Ukraine should pay back $11 billion in gas discounts as an agreement linked to the lease of the Sevastopol naval base in Crimea was now invalid.
Two credit rating agencies have now downgraded Russia’s outlook to negative from stable.
In Moscow, all 155 senators present in the upper house of parliament voted to ratify the treaty incorporating Crimea into the Russian Federation.
President Vladimir Putin is expected to complete the process by signing the treaty at a ceremony later on Friday.
EU leaders are due to meet in Brussels to discuss further targeted sanctions in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.
It comes as UN chief Ban Ki-moon visits Russian leaders in Moscow to urge a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
Tensions remain high in Crimea – pro-Russia forces seized two bases on Wednesday, including Ukraine’s navy headquarter in Sevastopol.
Ukraine’s navy commander was detained, but has now been released.
Crimean leaders signed a treaty with Moscow on Tuesday to absorb the peninsula – an autonomous republic in southern Ukraine – into Russia, following a disputed referendum on Sunday.
EU leaders are due to meet in Brussels to discuss further targeted sanctions in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine (photo AFP)
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the political process was expected to be completed this week, Russia’s Interfax news agency reports.
The lower house will vote on ratifying the Crimea treaty on Thursday, and the upper house on Friday. The measure is expected to sail through.
Sergei Lavrov said Russia was protecting the rights of Russians, and would continue to “insist their rights and freedoms are observed fully in the countries where [our] compatriots are living”.
Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and sailors remain trapped inside military bases on the peninsula, surrounded by heavily armed pro-Russia forces.
Earlier this week, a Ukrainian serviceman and a member of the pro-Russia self-defense force were killed in an incident in Simferopol.
The crisis comes nearly a month after Ukraine’s pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was replaced by Western-leaning interim authorities.
Western leaders have denounced Russia’s actions in Crimea as a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and a breach of international law.
The EU, the US and a number of other countries have already imposed sanctions on Russian and Ukrainian individuals.
Washington ordered the freezing of assets and travel bans on 11 individuals, while the EU imposed similar sanctions on 21 people.
EU leaders are expected to discuss extending their sanctions on Thursday, to possibly include political and military figures close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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President Barack Obama ruled out a “military excursion” by the US in Ukraine, saying that engaging Russia militarily “would not be appropriate.”
“We are not going to be getting into a military excursion in Ukraine,” Barack Obama said in an interview with KNSD in San Diego.
“What we are going to do is mobilize all of our diplomatic resources to make sure that we’ve got a strong international coalition that sends a clear message, which is that Ukraine should decide their destiny.”
“There is a better path, but I think even the Ukrainians would acknowledge that for us to engage Russia militarily would not be appropriate and would not be good for Ukraine either,” he added.
In a separate interview with KSDK in St. Louis, Barack Obama reiterated that a military option is not on the table but that the US and its allies are prepared to take “even more disruptive economic actions.”
Barack Obama ruled out a “military excursion” by the US in Ukraine
“Obviously, we do not need to trigger an actual war with Russia,” he said.
“The Ukrainians don’t want that. Nobody would want that.”
Barack Obama granted interviews to six local television stations on Wednesday.
In the interview with KNSD, President Barack Obama insisted that Russian President Vladimir Putin “acted out of weakness, not out of strength,” saying that Putin is “not comfortable” with countries loosening their ties to the Kremlin in favor of more freedom to deal with the West.
“His strategic decisions are no way based on whether he thought that we might go to war over this,” Barack Obama added.
“I think there’s a clear understanding that when it comes to our core interests or our NATO allies we can protect ourselves.”
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Armed pro-Russian activists have stormed the headquarters of Ukraine’s navy in the Crimean city of Sevastopol.
Several Ukrainian servicemen have left, the Russia flag is flying and there are reports that Ukrainian navy chief Serhiy Hayduk has been detained.
It comes a day after Crimean leaders signed a treaty with Russia absorbing the peninsula into Russia.
Sunday’s disputed referendum, which officials say backed splitting from Ukraine, has been widely condemned.
Crimean and Russian officials say the vote showed overwhelming public support for joining Russia, with 97% of voters in favor.
But the West and the Ukrainian government in Kiev say the referendum – organized in two weeks and boycotted by many of Crimea’s Ukrainian and Tatar minorities – was illegal, and the results will not be recognized.
Activists put Russian flag at the Sevastapol navy base
On Wednesday, Russia’s constitutional court approved the treaty as legal.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Ihor Tenyukh has reportedly been ordered to head to Crimea amid the rising tensions.
Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted Crimea’s Prime Minister Sergei Aksyonov, who is in Moscow, as saying: “Nobody will let them into Crimea, they will be sent back.”
Later, there were reports that Ukrainian navy chief Serhiy Hayduk had been detained and taken away from the base by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).
A number of Ukrainian servicemen were seen leaving the base. There have been no reports of clashes or shots being fired.
Ukrainian navy spokesman Sergiy Bogdanov told AFP news agency: “There are about 200 of them, some wearing balaclavas.”
“They are unarmed and no shots have been fired from our side. The officers have barricaded themselves inside the building,” he said.
He said even though Kiev had authorized the military to use force in Crimea in self-defense “we are not doing so and will not do so”.
Reports are also emerging of a similar incident at a Ukrainian navy base in Novo-Ozyorne, western Crimea.
Ukrainian defense ministry spokesman Vladyslav Seleznev said a tractor had rammed the gates of the compound and pro-Russians had entered the base.
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A Ukraine’s army junior officer has been killed in an attack on a military base in Crimea.
This is the first such death since pro-Russia forces took control in February.
Ukraine has now authorized its troops to fire in self-defense.
The attack came shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of Crimea signed a bill to absorb the peninsula into Russia.
Western powers condemned the treaty and a G7 and EU crisis meeting has been called for next week in The Hague.
The Ukrainian crisis began in November last year after pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych abandoned an EU deal in favour of stronger ties with Russia. He fled Ukraine on February 22 after protests in which more than 80 people were killed.
According to new reports, armed men arrived in two unmarked vehicles, storming the base in Simferopol and firing automatic weapons.
A Ukraine’s army junior officer has been killed in an attack on a military base in Crimea
The Ukrainian government said a junior officer who was on duty in a park inside the base had been killed and another officer injured. A third serviceman had leg and head injuries after being beaten with iron bars, it said.
The government said the commander of the unit was captured by men wearing Russian uniforms.
Defense ministry spokesman Vladislav Seleznyov told Reuters the attack was by “unknown forces, fully equipped and their faces covered”.
The Ukrainians had had their IDs, weapons and money confiscated, he said.
Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk told an emergency government meeting: “The conflict is shifting from a political to a military stage.
“Russian soldiers have started shooting at Ukrainian military servicemen and that is a war crime.”
Reports from the Crimean news agency, Kryminform, said a pro-Russia defense force member had been shot dead.
Crimean police later said both Ukrainian and pro-Russian forces had been fired on from a single location and that one Ukrainian was killed and one injured, and one pro-Russian was killed and one injured.
None of the accounts can be independently confirmed.
Until now only warning shots have been fired amid a truce – but it appears the tension has boiled over and there are fears that further clashes could follow.
Earlier, President Vladimir Putin told Russia’s parliament that Crimea had “always been part of Russia” and in signing the treaty he was righting a “historical injustice”.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of Crimea have signed a bill to incorporate the peninsula into Russia.
Vladimir Putin told parliament that Crimea had “always been part of Russia”.
Kiev said it would never accept the treaty and the US has called a G7-EU crisis meeting next week in The Hague.
After the signing, Kiev said a Ukrainian serviceman had been killed in an attack on a base in Crimea.
The defense ministry said the attack took place in the capital, Simferopol.
US Vice-President Joe Biden, speaking earlier in Poland, said Russia’s involvement in Crimea was “a brazen military incursion” and its annexation of the territory was “nothing more than a land grab” by Moscow.
The Ukrainian foreign ministry said: “We do not recognize and never will recognize the so-called independence or the so-called agreement on Crimea joining the Russian Federation.”
Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk said the Crimea crisis had moved from the political to the military stage.
Germany and France quickly condemned the Russia-Crimea treaty.
Vladimir Putin later appeared before crowds in Moscow’s Red Square, telling them: “Crimea and Sevastopol are returning to… their home shores, to their home port, to Russia!”
He shouted “Glory to Russia” as the crowds chanted “Putin!”
Vladimir Putin and Crimean leaders signs treaty to incorporate the peninsula into Russia
Crimean officials say that, in a referendum held in the predominantly ethnic-Russian region on Sunday, 97% of voters backed splitting from Ukraine.
The EU and the US have declared the vote illegal. Travel bans and asset freezes have been imposed on government officials and other figures in Russia, Crimea and Ukraine, but these have been largely dismissed as ineffectual in Russia.
In a televised address in front of both houses of parliament and Crimea’s new leaders, Vladimir Putin said: “In the hearts and minds of people, Crimea has always been and remains an inseparable part of Russia.”
The referendum had been legal and its results were “more than convincing”, he said.
“The people of Crimea clearly and convincingly expressed their will – they want to be with Russia,” he said, and were no longer prepared to put up with the “historical injustice” of being part of Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin criticized Ukraine’s post-uprising leaders and those behind the unrest, saying they were “extremists” who had brought chaos.
He also praised the “courage, bearing and dignity” of Crimeans, and thanked all Russians for their “patriotic feeling”.
The West, Vladimir Putin said, had behaved “irresponsibly” in backing the uprising, and he denied Russia was interested in annexing more territory.
“Don’t trust those who frighten you with Russia… we do not need a divided Ukraine” he said.
Russia “will of course be facing foreign confrontation,” he said, adding: “We have to decide for ourselves, are we to protect our national interest or just carry on giving them away forever?”
The audience frequently applauded Vladimir Putin at length during his emotionally charged speech, and gave him a standing ovation.
President Vladimir Putin, Crimea’s PM Sergei Aksyonov, the region’s Speaker Vladimir Konstantinov and the mayor of Sevastopol, Alexei Chaliy, then signed a treaty on making the Black Sea peninsula a part of Russia.
Earlier, Vladimir Putin had recognized Crimea as a sovereign state and approved a draft bill on its accession to the Russian Federation.
The bill must now be approved by the constitutional court and then ratified by parliament.
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President Vladimir Putin has formally informed the Russian parliament of Crimea’s request to join the Russian Federation.
This is the first legislative step towards absorbing the peninsula.
Vladimir Putin, who signed a decree on Monday recognizing Crimea’s independence, also approved a draft bill on the accession.
The move comes after a referendum on Sunday in which Crimean officials say 97% of voters backed splitting from Ukraine.
The EU and the US have declared the vote illegal and imposed sanctions.
Travel bans and asset freezes have been imposed on government officials and other figures in Russia, Crimea and Ukraine.
Kiev has appealed to the international community not to recognise the result of the vote, which interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk described as a “circus” carried out at gunpoint.
On Tuesday, Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that “for the sake of preserving Ukraine’s unity and sovereignty”, Kiev was prepared to grant “the broadest range of powers” to Ukraine’s other mainly Russian-speaking regions in the south and east, which have seen pro-Moscow protests in recent weeks.
In a pre-recorded address on Ukraine’s 5 Kanal TV – delivered in Russian – Arseniy Yatsenyuk said the reforms would give cities the right to run their own police forces and make decisions about education and culture.
Vladimir Putin has formally informed the Russian parliament of Crimea’s request to join the Russian Federation
Crimea was taken over by pro-Russian forces in late February after Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia following months of protests.
However, Russia has always insisted the troops are not under its direct control.
Kiev is also concerned about a build-up of Russian troops on its eastern borders, and has authorized the partial mobilization of 40,000 troops.
President Vladimir Putin is due to address both houses of the Russian parliament in a special session at 15:00 local time. A delegation of Crimea’s new leaders is also expected to attend.
Russian news website Gazeta.ru, quoting sources, says that after the speech, President Vladimir Putin and the speaker of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov, are expected to sign an agreement on Crimea’s “entry into the Russian Federation”.
Having approved the draft bill, Vladimir Putin has told lawmakers “to consider it practical to sign the agreement at the highest level,” Russia’s Interfax news agency reports.
Once signed, the bill must be approved by the constitutional court and then ratified by parliament.
The process is likely to be completed this week, after which Crimea is expected to be considered a new part of the Russian Federation, with the status of a republic.
In a sign of the wider impact of the Crimean referendum, parliament in the breakaway Moldovan region of Trans-Dniester announced on Tuesday that it too had appealed to Moscow for the right to join Russia, reports said.
Crimea was transferred from Russia to Ukraine while under Soviet rule in 1954 and much of its population is ethnic Russian.
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Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree recognizing Crimea as a sovereign and independent country.
The new decree is paving the way for Crimea to be absorbed into Russia.
It said it had taken into account Sunday’s referendum in Crimea, in which officials said 97% of voters backed breaking away from Ukraine.
The EU and the US said the referendum was illegal and imposed sanctions on 21 officials from Russia and Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree recognizing Crimea as a sovereign and independent country
Crimea was taken over by pro-Russian gunmen in late February.
The incursion came after Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia following months of street protests.
The Kremlin officially denies the gunmen are Russian soldiers, but concedes that lawmakers authorized President Vladimir Putin to use force after a formal plea for help from Viktor Yanukovych.
Crimea has been part of Ukraine since 1954, but much of its population is ethnic Russian.
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The EU and the US have imposed travel bans and asset freezes against a number of Russian and Ukrainian officials following the controversial referendum in Crimea.
The moves follow Sunday’s referendum in Crimea, in which officials say 97% of voters backed breaking away from Ukraine and joining Russia.
The individuals targeted by the sanctions are seen as having played a key role in the referendum, which Kiev, the US and EU deem illegal.
Pro-Russian forces have been in control of Crimea since late February.
Moscow says the troops are pro-Russian self-defense forces and not under its direct control.
The EU and the US have imposed travel bans and asset freezes against a number of Russian and Ukrainian officials following the controversial referendum in Crimea
President Barack Obama said in a press conference that Washington stood “ready to impose further sanctions” depending on whether Russia escalated or de-escalated the situation in Ukraine.
If Moscow continued to intervene in Ukraine, Barack Obama warned, it would “achieve nothing except to further isolate Russia and diminish its place in the world”.
The EU published a list of sanctions against 21 Russian and Ukrainian officials after a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels. The list includes the acting prime minister of Crimea, the speaker of Crimea’s parliament, three senior Russian commanders and several senior Russian parliamentary officials.
Selection of officials targeted:
- Dmitry Rogozin – Russian deputy PM (US)
- Valentina Matviyenko – head of Russia’s upper house (US)
- Sergei Aksyonov – acting PM of Crimea (US and EU)
- Vladimir Konstantinov – speaker of Crimean parliament (US and EU)
- Viktor Yanukovych – former Ukrainian president (US)
- Andrei Klishas – member of Russia’s upper house (US and EU)
- Leonid Slutsky – head of Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) parliamentary committee in Russia (US and EU)
- Sergei Zheleznyak – deputy speaker of Russia’s state Duma (EU)
- Alexsandr Vitko – commander of Black Sea Fleet (EU) [youtube HRY6OyI5F0k 650]
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EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels are discussing the bloc’s response, including imposing a visa ban and an asset freeze against a number of Russian officials following Crimea’s controversial referendum on Sunday.
According to Crimean officials, Sunday’s referendum overwhelmingly backed leaving Ukraine.
Ukraine’s chief electoral official, Mikhail Malyshev, said the vote was nearly 97% in favor of joining the Russian Federation, with a turnout of 83%.
The EU has already suspended talks on an economic pact with Russia and an easing of visa restrictions.
The EU will impose a visa ban and an asset freeze against a number of Russian officials following Crimea’s controversial referendum
Speaking in Brussels, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the “so-called referendum” was “illegal under the constitution of Ukraine and under international law”.
“I call upon Russia yet again to meet with Ukrainian leaders and to start a dialogue with them, and to try to move to de-escalation, please, as quickly as possible. We’ve seen no evidence of that,” Catherine Ashton told reporters.
The baroness said the EU “can’t simply sit back and say this situation can be allowed to happen”, but that ministers needed to think carefully about what their response should be.
The White House has also described Russia’s actions in Crimea as “dangerous and destabilizing”, and said the international community would not recognize the results of a poll “administered under threats of violence”.
President Barack Obama has warned Moscow that Washington is also ready to impose “costs” over its actions in Ukraine.
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Crimean parliament has formally declared independence from Ukraine and asked to join the Russian Federation.
The move follows Sunday’s controversial referendum which officials say overwhelmingly backed joining Russia.
The government in Kiev has said it will not recognize the results. The US and EU say the vote was illegal and have vowed to impose sanctions on Moscow.
The Crimean peninsula has been under the control of pro-Russia forces since late February.
Moscow says the troops are pro-Russian self-defense forces and not under its direct control.
The crisis follows the ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow president Viktor Yanukovych on February 22, following months of street protests and deadly clashes.
Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk has called the vote “a circus performance” which had been backed up by “21,000 Russian troops, who with their guns are trying to prove the legality of the referendum”.
Crimean parliament has formally declared independence from Ukraine and asked to join the Russian Federation
The vote was boycotted by many among Crimea’s minority Ukrainian and Tatar population, and the election process has been widely criticized.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian parliament in Kiev has formally approved the partial mobilization of 40,000 reservists, in response to what it called the “war-time situation”.
Interim President Oleksandr Turchynov described the referendum as a “great farce” which “will never be recognized either by Ukraine or by the civilized world”.
According to the vote in Crimea’s parliament on Monday, Ukrainian laws now no longer apply in the region and all state Ukrainian state property belongs to an independent Crimea.
The region will adopt the Russian currency, the rouble, and will move to Moscow time – two hours ahead – by the end of March.
The document approved by Crimean lawmakers also appealed to “all countries of the world to recognise it as an independent state”.
The referendum on breaking from Ukraine and joining Russia was called in early March by the Crimean parliament, with voters asked to choose between joining Russia, or having greater autonomy within Ukraine.
There was no option for those who wanted the constitutional arrangements to remain unchanged.
Ukraine’s chief electoral official, Mikhail Malyshev, said the vote was 96.6% in favor of joining the Russian Federation, with a turnout of 83%.
Crimea’s Tatar population – about 12% of the population – said they would boycott the vote, fearing their lives would be worse under the Kremlin.
The Tatars were deported to Central Asia by Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in 1944. They were only able to return with the fall of the Soviet Union and many want to remain in Ukraine.
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Crimea referendum showed support for a split from Ukraine with election officials saying that 96.6% of voters backed joining Russia.
The government in Kiev described the vote as a “circus performance” and said it would not recognize the result.
The EU and US say the referendum was illegal, but Russia says it was consistent with international law.
President Barack Obama has warned Moscow that Washington is also ready to impose “costs” over its actions in Ukraine.
Crimea PM Sergei Aksyonov celebrated referendum results
As polls closed on Sunday night, the White House said the international community “will not recognize the results of a poll administered under threats of violence”, describing Russia’s actions as “dangerous and destabilizing”.
The new authorities in Kiev say Russian troops moved in to Crimea after Ukraine’s pro-Moscow president, Viktor Yanukovych, was ousted following months of street protests.
Crimean leaders are expected to formally apply to the Kremlin on Monday to join Russia.
The Russian parliament had been expected to wait until Friday to begin debating the relevant legislation. It is now believed the process of absorbing Crimea could take place under existing laws.
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After half the votes have been counted, some 95.5% of voters in Crimea have supported joining Russia in a disputed referendum, officials announce.
Crimea’s leader Sergei Aksyonov says he will apply to join Russia on Monday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he will respect the Crimean people’s wishes.
Many Crimeans loyal to Kiev boycotted the referendum, and the EU and US condemned it as illegal.
Pro-Russian forces took control of Crimea in February.
Some 95.5 percent of voters in Crimea have supported joining Russia in a disputed referendum
They moved in after Ukraine’s pro-Moscow president was ousted by street protests.
The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama had spoken over the phone and agreed to seek a way to stabilize Ukraine.
Shortly after polling stations closed, however, the US renewed its threat to put sanctions on Russia.
White House spokesman Jay Carney condemned the vote as “dangerous and destabilizing” and said it would have “increasing costs for Russia”.
The EU said in a statement that the vote was “illegal and illegitimate and its outcome will not be recognized”.
EU foreign ministers are due to meet on Monday and are expected to consider imposing sanctions on Russian officials.
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People in Ukraine’s region Crimea are voting on whether or not to re-join Russia in a referendum condemned as “illegal” by Kiev and the West but backed by Moscow.
Russian troops have taken de facto control of the majority ethnic-Russian region, and voters are expected to support leaving Ukraine.
Crimean Tatars are boycotting the vote, pledging their allegiance to Kiev.
Russia earlier vetoed a draft UN resolution criticizing the vote – the only Security Council member to do so.
The US-drafted document was supported by 13 Council members. China, regarded as a Russian ally on the issue, abstained from the vote.
The US and EU have warned they would slap further tough sanctions against Russian officials if the referendum goes ahead.
Crimea are voting on whether or not to re-join Russia (photo AFP)
Russia intervened in the Crimean peninsula by seizing control of government buildings and blocking Ukraine’s troops at their bases after the fall of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych on February 22.
However, the Kremlin officially denies deploying extra troops there, describing them as Crimea’s “self-defense forces”.
Polling stations across Crimea opened at 08:00 local time and will close 12 hours later.
Voters are being asked whether they would like Crimea to rejoin Russia.
A second question asks whether Ukraine should return to its status under the 1992 constitution, which would give the region much greater autonomy.
Some 1.5 million voters are eligible to cast their ballots, and the first results are expected to be released shortly after the referendum.
Ethnic Russians form a clear majority in the region (58.5%), and many of them are expected to vote for joining Russia.
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The draft UN resolution criticizing Sunday’s secession referendum in Ukraine’s Crimea region has been vetoed by Russia.
Russia is the only Security Council member to vote against the measure.
China, regarded as a Russian ally on the issue, abstained from the vote.
Western powers criticized Russia’s veto over the referendum, which will ask Crimeans if they want to rejoin Russia.
Meanwhile, Kiev has accused Russian forces of seizing a village just north of Crimea and demanded they withdraw.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry said 80 military personnel backed by four helicopter gunships and three armored vehicles had taken the village of Strilkove.
An unnamed Russian official quoted by Pravda-Ukraine said they had taken action to protect a gas distribution station from “terrorist attacks”.
Russia intervened in the Crimean peninsula after the fall of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych on February 22.
Russia’s envoy Vitaly Churkin told the Security Council he would vote against the resolution
The Crimean region was part of Russia until 1954 and most of its residents are ethnic Russians, many of whom would prefer to be governed by Moscow rather than Kiev.
Russia’s Black Sea fleet is also still housed in Crimea.
But Russia has signed agreements promising to uphold Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
Crimea’s regional parliament instigated the secession referendum after lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to support rejoining Russia.
However, the national parliament in Kiev ruled the referendum unconstitutional, and earlier on Saturday voted to disband the regional assembly.
At the UN, 13 members of the Security Council backed a resolution that called for all nations to respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity and condemned the referendum as illegal.
Western diplomats had expected Russia to veto the document, but got what they wanted when China abstained.
China and Russia usually work in tandem at the Security Council.
But Beijing is sensitive about issues of territorial integrity, because of fears it could send a message to its own restive regions of Tibet and Xinjiang.
America’s UN envoy Samantha Power said it was a “sad and remarkable moment” and labeled Russia “isolated, alone and wrong”.
Samantha Power said Sunday’s referendum was “illegal, unjustified and divisive” and would have no effect on the legal status of Crimea.
Russian envoy Vitaly Churkin said the referendum was necessary to fill the “legal vacuum” since Ukraine’s “coup d’etat” last month.
Earlier in Moscow, tens of thousands rallied against Russia’s actions in Ukraine, the biggest such protest in two years.
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A huge rally is being held in Moscow to oppose Russia’s intervention in Ukraine a day before the region of Crimea votes to secede in favor of joining Russia.
Holding Russian and Ukrainian flags, protesters shouted: “The occupation of Crimea is Russia’s disgrace.”
A smaller pro-Moscow rally was being held elsewhere.
Moscow supports the vote, which Ukraine and the West have dismissed as illegal.
Kiev says Russian “provocateurs” are behind clashes eastern Ukraine.
Huge rally is being held in Moscow to oppose Russia’s intervention in Ukraine (photo AFP)
Three people have died in Ukraine in pro- and anti-Moscow rallies in the cities of Donetsk and Kharkiv with sides blaming each other.
Russia’s military intervention in the Crimean peninsula – part of Russia until 1954 and host to its Black Sea fleet – followed the fall of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych on 22 February.
Ukraine’s interim President Oleksandr Turchinov echoed the charge, saying “Kremlin agents” were organizing and funding the protests in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow denies this, vowing to protect its “compatriots” from far-right radicals.
Up to 50,000 people attended the rally in Moscow to oppose the government’s intervention in Crimea and eastern Ukraine.
According to officials, two people have been killed in clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian activists in Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv.
Five people were injured overnight, as gunshots were fired. Rival groups blamed each other for the violence.
Earlier, Russia and the US failed to agree on how to resolve the crisis in Ukraine’s Crimea region, ahead of a secession referendum there.
Russia vowed to respect Sunday’s vote – but the US said it was illegitimate.
Moscow has been tightening its military grip on Crimea – the southern autonomous republic in Ukraine – where voters are to decide on whether to re-join Russia or stay with Kiev.
The violence reportedly began on Kharkiv’s Svoboda Square on Friday evening and later moved to an office of a pro-Ukrainian group in the city.
Two people have been killed in clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian activists in Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv
Eyewitnesses said that pro-Russian activists tried to storm the rival protesters, who had barricaded themselves in.
The witnesses said that shots had been fired and Molotov cocktails thrown in.
Kharkiv Mayor Hennadiy Kernes was later quoted by Ukrainian media as saying that two people were killed and five injured.
Meanwhile, Kharkiv Governor Ihor Baluta called the incident “a provocation”.
Both rival groups blame each other for starting the clashes. A criminal investigation is now under way.
This follows Thursday night’s violence in Donetsk, also in the east, where at least one person died in fighting between a pro-Russian crowd and supporters of the new government in Kiev.
Ukraine accuses Russia of using provocateurs to stoke unrest on the eastern border. Moscow denies this, vowing to protect its “compatriots” from far-right radicals.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has announced that Russia and the US have “no common vision” on the crisis in Ukraine after meeting US Secretary of State John Kerry in London.
However, Sergei Lavrov called his London meeting with John Kerry “constructive”.
John Kerry said the US was “deeply concerned” about Russia sending troops to the Ukraine border and in Crimea.
Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would respect the result of Sunday’s referendum in Crimea on whether to join Russia but John Kerry said the US would not recognize it.
After six hours of talks, Sergei Lavrov told reporters that Russia had no plans to invade south-eastern Ukraine.
Russia would “respect the will of the people of Crimea”, he said.
Crimeans are to vote on Sunday, March 16, on whether to leave Ukraine and become part of the Russian Federation.
John Kerry, who described the talks as “direct and candid”, said the US acknowledged Russia’s “legitimate interests” in Ukraine.
Russia and the US have no common vision on the Ukraine crisis
He said that the US had not changed its position on the “illegitimate” referendum in Crimea and would not recognize its outcome.
However, John Kerry said his Russian counterpart had made it clear that President Vladimir Putin was not prepared to make any decision until after the vote.
The secretary of state said that he had told Sergei Lavrov that there would be consequences if Russia “does not find a way to change course”.
Russia’s military intervention in the Crimean peninsula – part of Russia until 1954 and host to its Black Sea fleet – followed the fall of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych on February 22.
Moscow has not recognized the interim government that took over in Kiev following Viktor Yanukovych’s departure.
Sergei Lavrov said that Russia had “deep concern” that there were “no measures” to provide security and order in Ukraine or to prevent the actions of “radicals”.
Thursday night saw clashes in Ukraine’s eastern city of Donetsk between a pro-Russian crowd and supporters of the new Kiev government, which left at least one person dead.
The US and the EU have said that Sunday’s vote in Crimea violates international law and the Ukrainian constitution, and are planning to impose sanctions against Russian officials if the crisis does not ease.
President Barack Obama also reiterated on Friday that there would be “consequences” if Ukraine’s “sovereignty continues to be violated”.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry are preparing for key talks on Ukraine in London, as a disputed referendum in Crimea looms on Sunday.
John Kerry is expected to warn Sergei Lavrov that the referendum and Russia’s military intervention in Crimea could trigger concerted US and EU sanctions.
He has warned of “very serious steps” if Russia annexes the region.
Russia insisted at the UN on Thursday it did “not want war” with Ukraine.
During an emergency meeting of the Security Council, Moscow’s ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin defended the right of Crimea, which is predominantly ethnic Russian, to decide whether or not to join the Russian Federation.
Russia’s military intervention followed the fall of Ukraine’s pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych on February 22.
John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov will meet at the US ambassador’s residence in central London.
It appears John Kerry will try to persuade Russia that it risks paying a heavy price in political and economic damage from American and European measures which could be triggered by Sunday’s referendum.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry are preparing for key talks on Ukraine in London (photo Reuters)
“If there is no sign of any capacity to be able to move forward and resolve this issue, there will be a very serious series of steps on Monday in Europe and here [in Washington] with respect to the options that are available to us,” he said before arriving in London on Friday.
While John Kerry seems to think the referendum itself may be all but unstoppable, he insists that it is what Russia does after that vote which counts – and Ukraine’s territorial integrity must not be permanently violated.
The talks are the last opportunity for face-to-face dialogue at such a senior level before the likely vote in Crimea, our correspondent says, which could determine whether what happens next edges Ukraine away from, or deeper into, a dangerous crisis.
John Kerry told lawmakers before his departure to London that the US was not eager to impose further sanctions on Russia.
“Our choice is not to be put in the position of having to do that. Our choice is to have a respect for the sovereignty and independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” he said.
The secretary of state said that he had spoken again by telephone with Sergei Lavrov on Thursday ahead of their Friday meeting, and that he and his Russian counterpart had been in almost daily contact over the past two weeks.
John Kerry has hinted at a possible compromise to the crisis by which the Ukrainian parliament would allow Crimea to hold a referendum on self-determination.
“The constitution of Ukraine requires that any effort by any entity within Ukraine to secede be done through the constitutional process,” John Kerry said.
He said that at the moment Russia did not “have the assets… necessary to be able to march in and take over Ukraine”, although he conceded that could change in future.
But correspondents say that the signs are not good for Friday’s talks, as both men have clashed in recent weeks and failed to agree on a number of US proposals.
Russia has refused to recognize the interim leadership that took over in Kiev with Viktor Yanukovych’s departure or participate in a contact group aimed at bringing the two countries together for talks.
In his appearance before the UN on Thursday, Vitaly Churkin said that it was Kiev that was “splitting its country into two parts”, not Moscow.
The referendum in Crimea, he said, had come about because of a “legal vacuum” in the country, and questioned why Crimeans should not be “afforded the opportunity” to decide on their future.
Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk told the UN Security Council that his country was a victim of Russian aggression, producing a copy of the UN Charter to make his point that Moscow was violating it and several other international treaties.
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More than 8,000 Russian troops have begun military exercises close to the border with Ukraine.
Russian defense ministry confirmed that artillery such as rocket launchers and anti-tank weapons would also be involved in the exercises.
They come at a time of high tension ahead of Crimea’s referendum on Sunday on whether to join Russia.
Ukraine PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk has told the UN Security Council his country is a victim of Russian aggression.
Arseniy Yatsenyuk said it was “absolutely and entirely unacceptable, in the 21st Century, to resolve any kind of conflict with tanks artillery and boots on the ground”, in reference to Russian troops at key sites in Crimea.
Meanwhile, reports from the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk say at least one person has been killed and several wounded in clashes between hundreds of pro- and anti-Moscow demonstrators.
More than 8,000 Russian troops have begun military exercises close to the border with Ukraine
Russia confirmed that military exercises had begun in the regions of Rostov, Belgorod and Kursk, which are close to the border of Ukraine, and would continue until the end of March.
“The main aim… is a multi-faceted check of the units’ cohesiveness followed by the performance of battle training assignments in unfamiliar terrain and untested firing ranges,” the Russian defense ministry said.
In a sign the tension may be spreading, Belarus – a Russian ally – confirmed Moscow had deployed, at its request, extra fighter jets and military transport aircraft after Nato boosted its forces in the neighboring Baltic countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told a meeting of his Security Council that this was an inter-Ukrainian crisis that “arose not through our fault, but we are involved in it, one way or another”.
He said he wanted to discuss how to “build relations with our partners and friends in Ukraine and our other partners in Europe and the United States”.
Separately, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) said Russia had now given its support to a possible long-term monitoring mission in Ukraine.
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Ukraine’s parliament has passed a bill to create a 60,000-strong National Guard to bolster the country’s defenses ahead of Crimea referendum.
The vote came ahead of Sunday’s referendum in Crimea, now controlled by pro-Russian forces, on whether citizens want to join Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin insists Russia is not to blame for the crisis.
Ukraine’s parliament has voted to create a 60,000-strong National Guard to bolster the country’s defences
Meanwhile Germany’s Angela Merkel says Moscow faces “massive” political and economic damage if it refuses to change course. The US has also threatened action.
Russia was exploiting the weakness of neighboring Ukraine, rather than acting as a partner for stability, the German chancellor said on Thursday, adding that there was no military solution to the crisis.
The Russian military and pro-Russian armed men moved in to seize key sites in Crimea – an autonomous region of Ukraine whose population is mainly ethnic Russian – in late February after the fall of President Viktor Yanukovych.
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Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk met President Barack Obama at the White House.
During their meeting, Barack Obama pledged to “stand with Ukraine” in its dispute with Russia.
The US president warned Russian President Vladimir Putin the international community “will be forced to apply costs” if Russia does not remove its troops from Crimea.
Earlier, leaders of the G7 group of nations issued a similar threat.
Arseniy Yatsenyuk, speaking after meeting Barack Obama, said Ukraine “will never surrender” to Russia.
“It is absolutely unacceptable to have Russian boots on the Ukrainian ground in the 21st century, violating all international deals and treaties,” he said.
The diplomatic appeals to Moscow come ahead of Sunday’s referendum in Crimea, in which citizens will be asked if they want to stay with Ukraine or join Russia.
Ukraine’s interim PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk met President Barack Obama at the White House
The Russian military and pro-Russian armed men moved in to seize key sites in Crimea – an autonomous region of Ukraine whose population is mainly ethnic Russian – in late February after the fall of President Viktor Yanukovych.
Barack Obama said the US has “been very clear that we consider Russia’s incursion into Crimea outside of its bases to be a violation of international law”.
“We have been very firm in saying we will stand with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in ensuring that territorial integrity and sovereignty is maintained,” he added.
In reference to scheduled talks between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in London on Friday, Barack Obama said he hoped diplomatic efforts will result in a “rethinking of the process”.
But he stressed that if Moscow “continues on the path that it is on then, not only us, but the international community… will be forced to apply a cost to Russia’s violations of international law and its encroachments on Ukraine”.
The president did not specify what those costs would be, but Washington has already issued visa bans to some high-profile Russians and threatened asset freezes for others.
Barack Obama also said the US “will completely reject” the results of Crimea’s referendum, saying it had been put together in a “slapdash” way.
As Barack Obama and Arseniy Yatsenyuk were holding talks, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to authorize $1 billion in loan guarantees to Ukraine’s new government and allow the US to impose sanctions on Russian and Ukrainian officials.
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