Sun 16 Mar 2014 - 3:49:03 PM
G7 may meet in London without Russia
An alternative meeting for the Group of Seven most developed economies could be held in London if Russia is expelled from the G8 for its aggressive policy in Ukraine, a German weekly reported yesterday.
Britain has proposed hosting the summit with Germany, Japan, France, Canada, Italy and the United States, Der Spiegel said, citing an unnamed source close to the German government.
Initially, a Group of Eight meeting including Russia was set to be held in June in Sochi, where the Russians had successfully hosted this year's Winter Olympic Games.
But Russia's expulsion from the rich countries' club is one of the international sanctions to be imposed if Moscow persists in its support for Crimea to quit Ukraine and join Russia, the subject of today's referendum in the flashpoint peninsula which Kiev and Western powers have said is illegal.
The German government, however, issued a statement saying that the only decision that has been made is to stop preparations for a G8 meeting.
"Other than that, no other decision has been taken," the statement from Chancellor Angela Merkel's office said.
http://www.businessinsider.com/crimea-referendum-votes-for-russia-2014-3
Crimea's Deputy Prime Minister Made A Troubling Prediction About What Happens Next
REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
A Russian army MI-35 military helicopter patrols the area as Ukrainian servicemen guard a checkpoint near the village of Strelkovo in Kherson region adjacent to Crimea, March 16, 2014.
Russian media is reporting that 93% of voters on the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea have voted to secede to Russia.
The big question, now that Russia has effectively annexed Crimea (even though the international community does not recognize the move), is what happens next.
Here's what Crimea's pro-Russian deputy prime minister told Richard Engel of NBC News:
Crimea To Abandon Hyrvnia, Switch To Russian Ruble On April 1st
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 03/16/2014 13:31 -0400
Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Temirgaliev has told RIANovosti that the region will abandon Ukraine's Hyrvnia:
- *CRIMEA TO SWITCH TO RUSSIAN RUBLE APRIL 1: RIA NOVOSTI
This is not a total surprise as Reuters reported the Crimean Deputy PM stating "we are ready to introduce a ruble zone," a week ago.
For the last few years the UAH/RUB exchange rate has oscillated around 38 in an 'almost' peg anyway...
But this move would isolate Crimeans from the potentially large devaluation that capital flows would create should a default occur (which looks increasingly likely)
From Reuters last week:
The Ukrainian region of Crimea could adopt the Russian ruble as its currency and "nationalize" state property as part of plans to join the Russian Federation, a regional official was quoted as saying on Thursday.
Interfax news agency cited Rustam Temurgaliyev, Crimea's vice premier, as saying: "All Ukrainian state enterprises will be nationalized and become the property of the Crimean autonomy."
Hoping Moscow would let Crimea become part of Russia, he said: "We are ready to introduce the ruble zone."
Of course, this may lead to the emergence of an even more broad 'black market' for dollars or rubles in Ukraine as we are sure the Ukraine government would fight back with capital controls of some sort.
With 79% Turnout, Exit Polls Confirm 93% Of Voters Back Crimea Joining Russia; US,UK Rejects Results
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 03/16/2014 14:12 -0400
With a voter turnout (79.09%) that exceeded every US Presidential election since 1900, the people of Crimea have spoken:
- *CRIMEA JOINING RUSSIA BACKED BY 93% OF VOTERS: EXIT POLL
- *U.K. FOREIGN SECRETARY: U.K. WON'T RECOGNIZE CRIMEAN REFERENDUM
Ukraine's leaders have called up 20,000 men for a newly-created National Guard as despite the so-called "truce" Russian APCs and Tanks are rolling. Pro-Russian supporters are burning books in Donetsk after storming anti-Russian buildings. The White House is already out rejecting the vote (before the final results are released).
Voter Turnout (by region):
As exit polls confirm overhwleming support for Crimea to join Russia...
- Exit poll by Crimea-based Republican Institute for Political and Sociological Studies released by Kryminform news service.
- 93% of voters back joining Russia: exit poll
Russia-Ukraine Agree "Truce" Until March 21st; White House Warns Putin Stop Playing "Russian Roulette"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 03/16/2014 12:05 -0400
- Bob Corker
- Fox News
- Meet The Press
- NBC
- Obama Administration
- Reuters
- Twitter
- Twitter
- Ukraine
- Vladimir Putin
- White House
"President Putin has started a game of Russian roulette and I think the United States and the West have to be very clear in their response," states Sen. Foreign Relations Committed Chair Robert Menendez among a slew of Sunday morning talk-show rhetoric from US politicians with the White House's Dan Pfeiffer adding "President Putin has a choice about what he's going to do here. Is he going to continue to further isolate himself, further hurt his economy, further diminish Russian influence in the world, or is he going to do the right thing?" As the "sham referendum" continues, Reuters, however, reports that Ukraine's acting defense minister believes Russia and Ukraine have agree a truce until March 21st.
Sunday Morning Talk-Show Rhetoric... (via AP)
If Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn't back down in Crimea, he will face penalties from the West that will hurt the Russian economy and diminish Moscow's influence in the world, the White House said Sunday.
White House senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer said the Obama administration's top priority is supporting the new Ukrainian government "in every way possible." He also said the United States would not recognize the results of a referendum taking place in Crimea Sunday on whether it should become part of Russia.
Pfeiffer said everything that Russia has done in Crimea has been a violation of international law and bad for stability in the region.
"President Putin has a choice about what he's going to do here. Is he going to continue to further isolate himself, further hurt his economy, further diminish Russian influence in the world, or is he going to do the right thing?" Pfeiffer said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
...
"President Putin has started a game of Russian roulette and I think the United States and the West have to be very clear in their response because he will calculate about how far he can go," said Sen. Robert Menendez, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Menendez appeared on Fox News Sunday along with the ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee. Corker said the U.S. and Europe were entering a "defining moment" in their relationship with Russia.
"Putin will continue to do this. He did it in Georgia a few years ago. He's moved into Crimea and he will move into other places unless we show that long-term resolve."
Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut returned early Sunday from meetings in Ukraine. He called an annexation vote taking place in Crimea a "sham referendum." He said that Ukrainians he talked to, both inside the government and outside, said war could occur if Russia attempts to annex more territory. They indicated that "If Russia really does decide to move beyond Crimea it's going to be bloody and the fight may be long," he said on ABC's "This Week."
But it appears truce has been reached for now...
The defense ministries of Ukraine and Russia have agreed on a truce in Crimea until March 21, Ukraine's acting defense minister said on Sunday.
"An agreement has been reached with (Russia's) Black Sea Fleet and the Russian Defense Ministry on a truce in Crimea until March 21," Ihor Tenyukh told journalists on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting.
"No measures will be taken against our military facilities in Crimea during that time. Our military sites are therefore proceeding with a replenishment of reserves."
As Ukrainian armed forces appear resigned to the loss:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2014-03/16/c_133190412.htm
Crimea referendum turnout stands at 44.27 pct in 4 hours: official
English.news.cn 2014-03-16 19:34:50 
SIMFEROPOL, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Turnout stood at 44.27 percent four hours into Crimea's referendum, an official said Sunday.
Mikhail Malyshev, chairman of the referendum commission, said that the highest turnout rate stood at 64 percent in one of the 27 polling areas.
There are 27 polling areas on the peninsula for 1,205 polling stations on Sunday.
Malyshev described the high turnout as something never seen since Soviet times.
Polling stations still have eight hours before closing on Sunday, with some 1.5 million registered voters expected to turn out for the third referendum in the history of Crimea.
Sun 16 Mar 2014 - 3:49:03 PM
An alternative meeting for the Group of Seven most developed economies could be held in London if Russia is expelled from the G8 for its aggressive policy in Ukraine, a German weekly reported yesterday.
Britain has proposed hosting the summit with Germany, Japan, France, Canada, Italy and the United States, Der Spiegel said, citing an unnamed source close to the German government.
Initially, a Group of Eight meeting including Russia was set to be held in June in Sochi, where the Russians had successfully hosted this year's Winter Olympic Games.
But Russia's expulsion from the rich countries' club is one of the international sanctions to be imposed if Moscow persists in its support for Crimea to quit Ukraine and join Russia, the subject of today's referendum in the flashpoint peninsula which Kiev and Western powers have said is illegal.
The German government, however, issued a statement saying that the only decision that has been made is to stop preparations for a G8 meeting.
"Other than that, no other decision has been taken," the statement from Chancellor Angela Merkel's office said.
Crimea's Deputy Prime Minister Made A Troubling Prediction About What Happens Next
REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
A Russian army MI-35 military helicopter patrols the area as Ukrainian servicemen guard a checkpoint near the village of Strelkovo in Kherson region adjacent to Crimea, March 16, 2014.
The big question, now that Russia has effectively annexed Crimea (even though the international community does not recognize the move), is what happens next.
Here's what Crimea's pro-Russian deputy prime minister told Richard Engel of NBC News:
Crimea To Abandon Hyrvnia, Switch To Russian Ruble On April 1st
Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Temirgaliev has told RIANovosti that the region will abandon Ukraine's Hyrvnia:
- *CRIMEA TO SWITCH TO RUSSIAN RUBLE APRIL 1: RIA NOVOSTI
This is not a total surprise as Reuters reported the Crimean Deputy PM stating "we are ready to introduce a ruble zone," a week ago.
For the last few years the UAH/RUB exchange rate has oscillated around 38 in an 'almost' peg anyway...
But this move would isolate Crimeans from the potentially large devaluation that capital flows would create should a default occur (which looks increasingly likely)
From Reuters last week:
The Ukrainian region of Crimea could adopt the Russian ruble as its currency and "nationalize" state property as part of plans to join the Russian Federation, a regional official was quoted as saying on Thursday.Interfax news agency cited Rustam Temurgaliyev, Crimea's vice premier, as saying: "All Ukrainian state enterprises will be nationalized and become the property of the Crimean autonomy."Hoping Moscow would let Crimea become part of Russia, he said: "We are ready to introduce the ruble zone."
Of course, this may lead to the emergence of an even more broad 'black market' for dollars or rubles in Ukraine as we are sure the Ukraine government would fight back with capital controls of some sort.
With 79% Turnout, Exit Polls Confirm 93% Of Voters Back Crimea Joining Russia; US,UK Rejects Results
With a voter turnout (79.09%) that exceeded every US Presidential election since 1900, the people of Crimea have spoken:
- *CRIMEA JOINING RUSSIA BACKED BY 93% OF VOTERS: EXIT POLL
- *U.K. FOREIGN SECRETARY: U.K. WON'T RECOGNIZE CRIMEAN REFERENDUM
Ukraine's leaders have called up 20,000 men for a newly-created National Guard as despite the so-called "truce" Russian APCs and Tanks are rolling. Pro-Russian supporters are burning books in Donetsk after storming anti-Russian buildings. The White House is already out rejecting the vote (before the final results are released).
Voter Turnout (by region):
As exit polls confirm overhwleming support for Crimea to join Russia...
- Exit poll by Crimea-based Republican Institute for Political and Sociological Studies released by Kryminform news service.
- 93% of voters back joining Russia: exit poll
Russia-Ukraine Agree "Truce" Until March 21st; White House Warns Putin Stop Playing "Russian Roulette"
- Bob Corker
- Fox News
- Meet The Press
- NBC
- Obama Administration
- Reuters
- Ukraine
- Vladimir Putin
- White House
"President Putin has started a game of Russian roulette and I think the United States and the West have to be very clear in their response," states Sen. Foreign Relations Committed Chair Robert Menendez among a slew of Sunday morning talk-show rhetoric from US politicians with the White House's Dan Pfeiffer adding "President Putin has a choice about what he's going to do here. Is he going to continue to further isolate himself, further hurt his economy, further diminish Russian influence in the world, or is he going to do the right thing?" As the "sham referendum" continues, Reuters, however, reports that Ukraine's acting defense minister believes Russia and Ukraine have agree a truce until March 21st.
Sunday Morning Talk-Show Rhetoric... (via AP)
If Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn't back down in Crimea, he will face penalties from the West that will hurt the Russian economy and diminish Moscow's influence in the world, the White House said Sunday.White House senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer said the Obama administration's top priority is supporting the new Ukrainian government "in every way possible." He also said the United States would not recognize the results of a referendum taking place in Crimea Sunday on whether it should become part of Russia.Pfeiffer said everything that Russia has done in Crimea has been a violation of international law and bad for stability in the region."President Putin has a choice about what he's going to do here. Is he going to continue to further isolate himself, further hurt his economy, further diminish Russian influence in the world, or is he going to do the right thing?" Pfeiffer said on NBC's "Meet the Press."..."President Putin has started a game of Russian roulette and I think the United States and the West have to be very clear in their response because he will calculate about how far he can go," said Sen. Robert Menendez, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.Menendez appeared on Fox News Sunday along with the ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee. Corker said the U.S. and Europe were entering a "defining moment" in their relationship with Russia."Putin will continue to do this. He did it in Georgia a few years ago. He's moved into Crimea and he will move into other places unless we show that long-term resolve."Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut returned early Sunday from meetings in Ukraine. He called an annexation vote taking place in Crimea a "sham referendum." He said that Ukrainians he talked to, both inside the government and outside, said war could occur if Russia attempts to annex more territory. They indicated that "If Russia really does decide to move beyond Crimea it's going to be bloody and the fight may be long," he said on ABC's "This Week."
But it appears truce has been reached for now...
The defense ministries of Ukraine and Russia have agreed on a truce in Crimea until March 21, Ukraine's acting defense minister said on Sunday."An agreement has been reached with (Russia's) Black Sea Fleet and the Russian Defense Ministry on a truce in Crimea until March 21," Ihor Tenyukh told journalists on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting."No measures will be taken against our military facilities in Crimea during that time. Our military sites are therefore proceeding with a replenishment of reserves."
As Ukrainian armed forces appear resigned to the loss:
|
| English.news.cn 2014-03-16 19:34:50 | |
SIMFEROPOL, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Turnout stood at 44.27 percent four hours into Crimea's referendum, an official said Sunday.
Mikhail Malyshev, chairman of the referendum commission, said that the highest turnout rate stood at 64 percent in one of the 27 polling areas.
There are 27 polling areas on the peninsula for 1,205 polling stations on Sunday.
Malyshev described the high turnout as something never seen since Soviet times.
Polling stations still have eight hours before closing on Sunday, with some 1.5 million registered voters expected to turn out for the third referendum in the history of Crimea.
Putin Reiterates To Merkel That Crimean Referendum Is Legal
More of the same. Via the Kremlin:
- PUTIN, MERKEL DISCUSSED UKRAINE CRISIS BY PHONE, KREMLIN SAYS
- PUTIN TELLS MERKEL RUSSIA WILL RESPECT CHOICE MADE BY CRIMEANS
- PUTIN SAYS CONCERNED ABOUT TENSIONS IN SOUTH, EAST UKRAINE
- PUTIN TELLS MERKEL CRIMEA REFERENDUM ON JOINING RUSSIA IS LEGAL
Even as the West (and NATO) continues to reject any legitimacy of the referendum.
So what happens when the people vote to join Russia, Russia formally annexes the territory and calls the western diplomatic bluff? The answer may be provided as early as 8pm local Ukrainian time when the polls are set to close, and it will likely involve further provocations such as this one, reported moments ago by Sky News:"Interfax reports three Ukrainian military trains carrying equipment into eastern Ukraine have been intercepted by Russian forces."
The Crimean Referendum Vote: A Photo Summary
The much anticipated, if largely moot, Crimean referendum vote whether to break away from Ukraine and join Russia, began early on Sunday, even as Kiev is accusing Moscow of rapidly building up its armed forces on the peninsula in "crude violation" of an international treaty.
According to Reuters, Ukrainian acting defence minister Ihor Tenyukh said Russian troop numbers in Crimea were now almost double the level agreed with Moscow, and Kiev's forces were taking "appropriate measures" along the border with Russia. Tenyukh dismissed any suggestion that a militarily and economically weakened Ukraine might give up in the face of the Russian power. "Decisions will be taken depending on how events unfold. But let me say once again that this is our land and we will not be leaving it," he told Interfax news agency.
In the meantime, the vote has begun: "I have voted for Russia," said Svetlana Vasilyeva, a veterinary nurse who is 27. "This is what we have been waiting for. We are one family and we want to live with our brothers."
Last month's fall of Moscow-backed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich following deadly protests in Kiev has aroused fears among some of the country's native Russian-speakers.
"We want to leave Ukraine because Ukrainians told us that we are people of a lower kind. How can you stay in such a country?" said Vasilyeva.
Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. (0600 GMT) and close 12 hours later. Provisional results will be released late on Sunday with the final tally expected a day or two later.
Crimea's 1.5 million voters have two options: union with Russia or giving their region, which is controlled by pro-Kremlin politicians, the broad right to determine its own path and choose relations with whom it wants - including Moscow.
Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. (0600 GMT) and close 12 hours later. Provisional results will be released late on Sunday with the final tally expected a day or two later. According to Bloomberg, as of noon, the vote turnout at 44%, citing Crimean referendum chief Mikhail Malyshev in Simferopol. Malyshev also reported that the Sevastopol turnout at 49% at noon, adding that no voting violations reported. The Crimean deputy PM said that he expects an 80%+ turn out in the vote with over 80% voting in favor of joining Russia.
Those curious what the Ukrainians are thinking:
http://rt.com/news/yarosh-destroy-russia-pipelines-186/
Right Sector leader: Kiev should be ready to sabotage Russian pipelines in Ukraine
The leader of ultranationalist group Right Sector, Dmitry Yarosh, has threatened to destroy Russian pipelines on Ukrainian territory if a diplomatic solution is not reached with Moscow.
In a fiery address loaded warmongering rhetoric, Yarosh told his followers they should be ready to resist the Russian “occupiers.” The leader of the Right Sector made his address to the coup-appointed government in Kiev, as Crimeans made their way to ballots Sunday to vote to join with Russia or to remain within Ukraine.
“We cannot allow the enemy to carry out a blitzkrieg attack on Ukrainian territory. We mustn’t forget that Russia makes money sending its oil through our pipelines to the West. We will destroy these pipelines and deprive our enemy of its source of income,” Yarosh said.
Continuing the bellicose rhetoric, Yarosh appealed to his followers, urging them to take up arms against Russia, if a diplomatic solution cannot be reached.
Yarosh said that Crimea was too small to satisfy the appetite of the “Russian Empire,” and that the Kremlin would seek to take over the whole of Ukraine.
“Let the ground burn under the feet of the occupiers! Let them choke on their own blood when they attack our territory! Not one step back! We will not allow Moscow’s beserk, totalitarian regime to spark a Third World War!”
The phrase “Not one step back!” was used in a famous order by Joseph Stalin during WWII and became a popular slogan for the Soviet people’s resistance against the Nazis. Yarosh’s use of this particular rhetoric attracted attention from many observers, given that the members of his Right Sector group are known to use Nazi insignia.
http://rt.com/news/gas-supply-crimea-sabotage-142/
Crimean military thwarts sabotage of gas plant feeding peninsula
Crimean military and self-defense forces have prevented an attempt to sabotage and cripple the gas distribution center that feeds a number of socially critical facilities in the peninsula, including schools and medical centers, Crimean authorities said.
Around 11:00 GMT on Saturday the gas supply to Crimea was halted at one of the distribution centers near Strelkovaya, effectively cutting gas delivery to a number of areas in the eastern part of the Crimean peninsula. As a result a number of hospitals, medical centers, schools and apartment buildings were cut off from the gas supply.
A group of gas technicians, escorted by the Crimea’s newly created military, comprised of former Ukrainian troops who have sworn their allegiance to the republic, responded to the supply disturbance and set out to check the gas station.
“There they encountered a group of at least 20 armed men in camouflage,” the Cabinet of Ministers of Crimea announced. “These people were planting explosives at the facility in order to knock it out of action completely.”
Upon seeing the Crimean forces, they quickly fled towards the village of Strelkovaya, authorities explained. According to Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksenov, the men sabotaging the facility introduced themselves as the member of the Border Troops of Ukraine, but retreated without any further explanation of what they were doing at the gas plant.
The gas supply has been restored, Crimean authorities said, adding that the “distribution station was taken under control by self-defense forces of Crimea in order to halt similar provocations in the near future.”
Aksenov says such measures are needed to “ensure the energy security of the Republic of Crimea and the smooth functioning of critical infrastructure,” as cited by Crimean news agency.
Ukraine in the meantime has a completely different view on the situation and has yet again accused the third party, namely Russia, of military aggression. Ukrainian media in the meantime reported nothing about the diversion at the gas plant.
Security measures are high in Crimea ahead of Sunday’s referendum and following the official formation of the National Guard comprised of Maidan self-defense squads, many of whom are considered neo-fascist from the Right Sector and Svoboda Party. In addition, large quantities of weapons have been missing from Ukrainian depots, during the coup that deposed government in Kiev.
The National Guard units would act as guardians of the coup leadership and ideals, believes editor-in-chief of National Defense Magazine Igor Korotchenko.
“Roughly speaking, these will be the commissars of the Maidan, people with executive functions and the right to dismiss field commanders in case of any suspicion of disloyalty to the new Ukrainian authorities,”the journalist elaborated, saying the troops will be deployed to those areas which seek greater autonomy from Kiev and might be used “against the population and the Self-Defense Forces of Crimea.”
The Right Sector, which is believed to be the nucleus of the newly set up National Guard is notorious for its violent rhetoric and extremist actions.
This week, Yalta, a resort city in Crimea, on the north coast of the Black Sea, already witnessed sabotage actions from the Right Sector, when authorities found and dismantled a bomb in one of the local cafes. On Wednesday Aksenov also announced he had information that the Right Sector might be planning an attack on one of the Ukrainian army units in the peninsula under the guise of Russian servicemen as a provocation to disrupt the referendum.
Ahead of the referendum the Russian foreign ministry warned that a number of fighters, including those from the Right Sector are acting across Ukraine, citing the attack in Kharkov on Friday that killed two people.
“We are receiving disturbing information that a column of armed Right Sector mercenaries, whose leaders announced the opening of the ‘Eastern Front’, has departed from Kharkov to Donetsk and Lugansk, while at one of the garment factories they are urgently sewing Russian uniforms,” Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Foreign Ministry also raised concerns with the Ukrainian Parliament’s move to “legitimize the Right Sector and other radicals” by converting them into official military units “such as the National Guard.”
This development, the ministry says, was discussed during the talks between the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his US counterpart John Kerry on Friday. The statement also says that Russia is receiving a large number of petitions from Ukraine asking Moscow for protection.
On Saturday, Russia vetoed a US sponsored UN Security Council’s resolution that sought to declare the Crimea referendum invalid, since it found the draft as countering the basic principle of international law enshrined in the Article 1 of the UN Charter – the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples.
“The upcoming Crimean referendum is fully consistent with international law and the UN Charter, and its results should be the starting point in determining the future of the peninsula,” Lavrov said during a telephone conversation with Kerry. Lavrov once again stressed that Kiev should curb the activities of ultra-radical groups terrorizing those rejecting the coup, including the Russian speaking part of Ukraine’s population.
and....
http://rt.com/news/crimea-independence-referendum-poll-110/
A crucial referendum on either becoming an integral part of Russia or staying within Ukraine on conditions of wide autonomy has kicked off in the Republic of Crimea despite international condemnation and pressure from Kiev.
Crimean authorities have reported about 135 registered international observers have arrived from 23 countries, including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia and Poland. Members of the EU and national European parliaments, international law experts and human rights activists together with 1,240 local observers are monitoring the voting at ballot stations. Mass media in the peninsula is represented by 623 accredited journalists from 169 international media outlets.
After a power grab took place in capital Kiev on February 22, Ukraine’s legitimate President Viktor Yanukovich had to flee from his residence fearing for his life. The parliament of the Crimea autonomy, where about 60 percent of the residents are ethnic Russians, did not acknowledge the coup-imposed government in Kiev as legitimate and took the decision to dissociate from Ukraine.
On March 11 the parliament of the Crimea autonomy adopted a declaration of independence from Ukraine, opening way for the referendum on March 16.
The referendum in Crimea was preceded with numerous provocations on the peninsula and threats coming from the capital Kiev and western politicians.
Since the moment Crimea set date for independence referendum, official Kiev has been claiming that all actions of the Crimea authorities are illegitimate, disregarding the international practice of referendums.
On Saturday Ukraine's parliament made the last desperate gesture to prevent the referendum, voting to dismiss the Crimean Supreme Council.
Two choices the voters will be given in the ballot during the Crimean referendum with the voters able to choose only one:1) in favor of the reunification of Crimea with Russia as a part of the Russian Federation2) in favor of restoring the 1992 Constitution and the status of Crimea as a part of Ukraine.
Though self-defense guards have done their best to prevent provocations in the peninsula, they took place anyway.
On the eve of the vote, Crimean self-defense forces prevented an attempt to damage a gas pipeline at the Arabat Spit. The people trying to damage the pipeline introduced themselves as officers of the Border Guard, the Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov said.
In the Crimean capital of Simferopol an undisclosed number of people under the guise of policemen were detained for purposefully damaging civilians’ passports or taking away their documents to make it impossible for the citizens to vote in the absence of ID.
The same fraud has been also reported in the small town of Saky in western Crimea.
Nationalists from western Ukraine and Kiev, such as members of ultra-nationalist Right Sector group, made multiple attempts to sneak into the autonomous region to stage protests against Crimean independence.
Sometimes people shouting Nazi slogans joined peaceful demonstrations in Crimea’s cities, calling upon people not to vote in the referendum.
Despite that, mass pro-Russian protests have been held for the past weeks in the eastern regions of Ukraine and Crimea. The demonstrators were protesting against the new government, storming local government offices and replacing Ukrainian flags with the Russian tricolor. People in Simferopol, Odessa, Kharkov, Donetsk, Lugansk, Melitopol, Yevpatoria, Kerch and Mariupol – all took to the streets shouting slogans in support of the Crimean referendum.
According to a GfK poll of 600 residents taken Thursday and Friday ahead of the referendum, 70 percent said they will vote to become part of Russia, while 11 percent said they will vote to restore Crimea’s status as part of Ukraine.
http://rt.com/news/kiev-clashes-rioters-police-571/
Sunday, March 16
18:40 GMT:
Demonstrators in Kharkov, north-east Ukraine, have appealed to Russia to pass to the UN their demands over a referendum on the federalization, while hundreds of protesters in Donetsk stormed a prosecutor’s office demanding to free a local “governor”.
18:07 GMT:
About 93 percent of voters in the Crimean referendum have answered ‘yes’ to the autonomous republic joining the Russian Federation. Only 7 percent of the vote participants want the region to remain part of Ukraine, according to first exit polls.
17:04 GMT:
73.41% percent of Crimea’s residents had voted by 1600 GMT, the local parliament’s commission on the referendum said.
The turnout has reached 73.4% at the referendum in Crimea two hours before polling stations are closed, chairman of the referendum commission Mikhail Malyshev said.
"A total 1,122,999 million people have voted," the referendum commission chairman said, adding "The turnout in Sevastopol has amounted to 83.5%."
16:55 GMT:
The Crimean referendum is illegal and illegitimate and its outcome will not be recognized, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said in a joint statement on Sunday, Reuters reports.
16:04 GMT:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested in a phone conversation with President Putin to expand the role of the OSCE’s (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) mission in Ukraine, the official representative of the German embassy Steffen Zeibert said, as quoted by Itar-Tass.
“Despite the differences in opinions concerning the referendum in Crimea and the question of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, the Chancellor and President have discussed the tense situation as regards security in this country,” Zeibert stated.
According to Zeibert, Merkel “suggested expanding the OSCE’s mission as soon as possible and sending more observers to the epicenter of the crisis, especially to eastern regions.”
"President Putin reacted to this initiative positively," Zibert added.
15:58 GMT:
The turnout for the referendum in Crimea at 1700 local time (1500 GMT) was 70 per cent, the referendum’s website says.
15:44 GMT:
No corrections are being made to Russia's foreign policy because of the threats of sanctions, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Komsomolskaya Pravda daily. He added that no corrections have been made to President Putin’s schedule, and no foreign state visits have been canceled over the recent situation in Ukraine. It comes amid harsh rhetoric from US and EU politicians.
“The declarations are not the reason to make any corrections,” Peskov said, adding that Moscow“surely” carries on the relations with those countries.
“Let’s wait for concrete decisions because at the moment, it’s about the media reports, some general declarations. When we see concrete decisions, we’ll evaluate the risks and possible consequences for both us and our partners,” Peskov said.
14:44 GMT:
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has urged US Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone call to use US influence on Kiev to prevent unlawful acts towards the Russian population, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“The provocations by the ultranationalist and radical forces in the southeastern region have become more frequent, led to casualties among the civilian population, and are destabilizing the situation,” Lavrov said.
Kerry assured Lavrov that Washington is already carrying out the necessary steps and is counting on them to bring positive results soon.
14:23 GMT:
About 64 % of voters in Crimea have already had their say at the referendum by 1500 local time (13 GMT), according to the head of the republic’s commission on the vote, Mikhail Malyshev. The highest voter turnout has so far been in the city of Kerch, eastern Crimea.
11:53 GMT:
There have been no excesses at the polling stations, said Mikhail Malyshev, head of the referendum committee.
“I have contacted the police headquarters,” he said, stressing that there have been “no complaints of any conflicts registered in the headquarters.”
11:52 GMT:
Ukrainian military personnel stationed in Crimea are not being given an opportunity to vote in the referendum despite their great desire, said Mikhail Malyshev, head of the referendum committee, Itar-Tass reported.
"They have a great desire to come to vote, but the commanders of the military units do not permit them to leave the [bases’] territory," he said. According to Malyshev, the committee received 12 calls with such complaints.
11:48 GMT:
A motor rally in support of the Crimean referendum and the people of Ukraine took place in the center of Russia’s northern capital, St. Petersburg, on Sunday. According to the Great Motherland Party organization, about 300 cars, mostly SUVs, participated in the rally. The main motto of the action was "Not leaving our people!", and the vehicles were decorated with Russian and Crimean flags.
11:45 GMT:
A demonstration against the coup-imposed government in Kiev resumed in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk. Up to 1,000 protesters are rallying downtown, supported by protest convoys of cars with Russian flags driving through Donetsk. Protesters are holding banners demanding an allegiance referendum and release of “people’s governor” Pavel Gubarev, who was arrested by Kiev authorities on separatism charges. Yesterday, a 5,000-strong demonstration in Donetsk besieged security service and Ministry of Interior headquarters, demanding the release of the arrested activists, conducting a national referendum “on the issue of government of Ukraine and assigning the Russian language a status of the second state language.”
11:20 GMT:
The Supreme Council of the Crimean Autonomous Republic is expected to declare the results of the referendum on Monday morning at a special session scheduled for 10 am (0800 GMT), which means that the final count of the ballots will be completed by that time. Crimean Prime Minister Sergey Aksyonov has confirmed that a detailed plan for the republic’s development is already being worked out with the help of Russian experts. “I believe we will present the program in full within literally one or two days,” Aksyonov said. Crimea’s PM said that voter turnout had already exceeded the one witnessed during the 2012 parliamentary elections “by two or three times.”
10:55 GMT:
Up to 50 percent of the voters in Crimea’s largest city of Sevastopol turned up at polling stations by noon (10:00 GMT) to cast their votes in a referendum deciding the future state affiliation of the Crimea Autonomous Republic, interim mayor Dmitry Belik reported. The situation in Sevastopol remains relaxed and festive. The most visible manifestation of the tightened security in the city remains the prohibition for vehicles to enter the city’s downtown. Sevastopol is decorated with the Russian tricolor and St. Andrew's (Russian Navy) flags. A gala concert has been scheduled for Sunday evening where, as expected, preliminary results of the referendum are going to be announced.
10:44 GMT:
The official website of the Crimean referendum is down due to a cyber-attack that originated from the United States, local minister of information and mass communications Dmitry Polonsky told the Itar-Tass news agency.
The exact location from which the website’s servers were scanned was Illinois University, Polonsky said.
The exact location from which the website’s servers were scanned was Illinois University, Polonsky said.
07:51 GMT:
People are actively casting their ballots in Sevastopol, where most of the residents will likely have voted by noon, the head of the city’s election committee, Valery Medvedev, told journalists, RIA Novosti reported.
A total of 192 polling stations are currently opened in Sevastopol, which is home to 306,000 eligible voters. Fifty foreign observers are monitoring the referendum there.
07:42 GMT:
A poll conducted by GfK, an international research organisation, suggests that 70 percent of Crimeans will vote for the republic to become part of Russia, while 11 percent will say yes to Crimea’s status as part of Ukraine. GfK questioned 600 residents on Thursday and Friday. If Crimea’s independence from both Ukraine and Russia was on the ballot, 19 percent would vote for that option. But even in this situation, 54 percent of Crimeans would vote to join Russia, the poll found.
07:37 GMT:
All of Crimea’s 1,205 polling stations have opened, despite harsh weather conditions, the head of the Crimean parliament’s commission on the referendum, Mikhail Malyshev, said. Local emergency services issued a storm warning on the eve of the referendum.
“People are standing in lines at many polling stations, they want to cast their ballots,” RIA Novosti reported Malyshev as saying.
“People are standing in lines at many polling stations, they want to cast their ballots,” RIA Novosti reported Malyshev as saying.
06:38 GMT:
Crimea’s prime minister, Sergey Aksyonov, was among the first to cast his ballot in the referendum on the republic's status, Itar-Tass reports. After casting his ballot, Aksyonov described the referendum to journalists as a historic moment.
06:03 GMT:
Polling stations have opened in Crimea as the referendum on the region’s status begins. The voting will go on for 12 hours, during which the Crimeans will decide whether the region reunifies with Russia or remains part of Ukraine.
05:51 GMT:
International observers in Sevastopol are going to attend as many polling stations as possible on the day of the referendum, according to the chairman of the St. Petersburg election commission, Alexei Puchnin.
"Preparations [for the referendum] may be assessed as rather good,” he told Itar-Tass. "A total of 192 polling stations were set up in Sevastopol, and up to 3,000 people will vote there, which is fully in line with international and Russian standards."
Ahead of the plebiscite in Crimea, RT interviewed some of the European observers there. Tune in to what they had to say.
Saturday, March 15
21:53 GMT:
A rally condemning the actions of Western powers in Ukraine has been held in Stockholm, Sweden.
The activists urged the EU and US to stop provoking a war between Ukraine and Russia, as they stressed friendly relations between nations.
20:20 GMT:
The referendum in Crimea is fully consistent with international law and the UN Charter, Russian Foreign Minister told US Secretary of State John Kerry.
“The upcoming Crimean referendum is fully consistent with international law and the UN Charter, and its results should be the starting point in determining the future of the peninsula,” Sergey Lavrov said during a telephone conversation with John Kerry. Lavrov also stressed that authorities in Kiev should curb the activities of ultra-radical groups terrorizing those rejecting the coup including the Russian speaking part of Ukraine’s population.
Hi Fred,Kev,Big Sis,
ReplyDeleteSyrian girl has a new interview posted,she's speaking with Ukrainian girl who has family on both sides of the spectrum there and has some inside perspective on the situation:
http://www.youtube.com/user/SyrianGirlpartisan
NW
Hi NW, Thanks that was a good interview.
ReplyDeleteJust finished reading back to where I was yesterday, man there are so many things going on. And those were mostly political/war updates, well except for the Gold updates. Well even the Ukraine gold crossed over to political. But anyway the point being that these times are crazy, just imagine how many updates there could have been if you had thrown in Fukushima, the ongoing conversion of the US to a police state, sink holes, weather and what ever else is going on.
ReplyDeleteJust amazing, anyway it's what popped into my head this morning so I thought I would share.
Morning Kev and NW ! Hope all is well - and yes , there is a
ReplyDeletelot going on , many of the things going on have interconnections as well ! Looking at Iraq / Afghanistan , Syria and Libya ( and also consider Ukraine and Iran ) the US and EU nations continue to behave as a collective " Galactus" , destroying nations and then moving on to destroy more......
Russia and China have finally had enough and beginning with Syria , then Iran and now Ukraine , have put a halt to the global meglomania ( much to the annoyance of Galactus ! )
The Malaysia Airline situation continues to evolve , more questions generated by the half answers , contradictions and misstatements tossed out by Malaysian officials ! Prayers for the families with the faint hopes that those passengers might yet be alive somewhere . Just have the feeling we are still in the early innings of whatever may be planned for that 777 !
So , there's a lot going on , so far the weather is nice ( think you may get more snow than me this go round Kev ! ) Gold and bitcoin remain interesting , but you know we will see another takedown move for both soon !
Enjoy your day and your Sunday bike ride !
BTW , on Fukushima , I have started to just do a weekly post ( so items of note are added during the course of the week , so you can check the running tally of things to ponder on that front , as a given week goes by ! )
Delete