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| Crimea’s Leader Moves to Cement Control Over Region | Crimea’s Leader Moves to Cement Control Over Region |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| KIEV, Ukraine — The newly installed, pro-Russia prime minister of Crimea declared on Saturday that he had sole control over the military and the police in the disputed peninsula and he appealed to President Vladimir Putin of Russia for help in safeguarding the region. | KIEV, Ukraine — The newly installed, pro-Russia prime minister of Crimea declared on Saturday that he had sole control over the military and the police in the disputed peninsula and he appealed to President Vladimir Putin of Russia for help in safeguarding the region. |
| Ukraine’s government accused Russian armed forces on Friday of taking up positions in Crimea, an autonomous republic on the Black Sea, in what Ukrainian officials said was an invasion and a violation of Ukraine’s sovereign territory. President Obama on Friday warned Russia against military intervention. | Ukraine’s government accused Russian armed forces on Friday of taking up positions in Crimea, an autonomous republic on the Black Sea, in what Ukrainian officials said was an invasion and a violation of Ukraine’s sovereign territory. President Obama on Friday warned Russia against military intervention. |
| In his statement, the Crimean prime minister, Sergei Aksyonov, said: “Understanding my responsibility for the life and safety of citizens, I appeal to the president of Russia, Vladimir V. Putin, for assistance in providing peace and tranquillity on the territory of the autonomous Republic of Crimea.” | |
| “As chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea,” Mr. Aksyonov said, “I make the decision to temporarily put the armed units and groups of the Interior Ministry, the Security Service, the armed forces, the Emergency Situations Ministry, the fleet, the Tax Service, and the border guards under my direct control. All commanders shall follow only my orders and instructions” | “As chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea,” Mr. Aksyonov said, “I make the decision to temporarily put the armed units and groups of the Interior Ministry, the Security Service, the armed forces, the Emergency Situations Ministry, the fleet, the Tax Service, and the border guards under my direct control. All commanders shall follow only my orders and instructions” |
| He added, “I ask anyone who disagrees to leave the service.” | He added, “I ask anyone who disagrees to leave the service.” |
| The Kremlin, in a statement released to Russian news services, said it “will not ignore” the request of assistance from Mr. Aksyonov. | The Kremlin, in a statement released to Russian news services, said it “will not ignore” the request of assistance from Mr. Aksyonov. |
| And separately, in what appeared to reflect coordinated Russian responses after the Crimean appeals for help, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that unidentified gunmen “directed from Kiev” had tried to size control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs building in Simferopol. | And separately, in what appeared to reflect coordinated Russian responses after the Crimean appeals for help, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that unidentified gunmen “directed from Kiev” had tried to size control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs building in Simferopol. |
| The Foreign Ministry said “vigilante groups” trying to seize the building had been repelled, but said the attack “confirms the desire of prominent political circles in Kiev to destabilize the situation in the peninsula." Local officials said there was an exchange of gunfire. | |
| Crimea, while part of Ukraine, has enjoyed a large degree of autonomy under an agreement with the federal government in Kiev since shortly after Ukrainian independence from the Soviet Union. The strategically-important peninsula, which has been the subject of military disputes for centuries, has strong historic, linguistic and cultural ties to Russia. The population of roughly two million is predominantly Russian, followed by a large number of Ukrainians. | Crimea, while part of Ukraine, has enjoyed a large degree of autonomy under an agreement with the federal government in Kiev since shortly after Ukrainian independence from the Soviet Union. The strategically-important peninsula, which has been the subject of military disputes for centuries, has strong historic, linguistic and cultural ties to Russia. The population of roughly two million is predominantly Russian, followed by a large number of Ukrainians. |
| The consolidation of control by Mr. Aksyonov and the appeal for help from Moscow further enflamed tensions in the dispute over Crimea and deepened the crisis confrontng Ukraine’s new interim government in Kiev, including the possibility of an effort by Crimea to secede from Ukraine. Officials in Crimea on Saturday also announced that a public referendum on Crimean independence would be moved to March 30, instead of being held along with the Ukrainian presidential elections on May 25, | |
| Officials here in the capital of Kiev reacted angrily to the developments on Saturday and reiterated their demands that Russia pull back its forces, and confine them to the military installations in Crimea, including the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol, that Russia has long leased from Ukraine. | Officials here in the capital of Kiev reacted angrily to the developments on Saturday and reiterated their demands that Russia pull back its forces, and confine them to the military installations in Crimea, including the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol, that Russia has long leased from Ukraine. |
| “The presence of Russian troops in Crimea now is unacceptable,” Prime Minister Arseniy P. Yatsenyuk said on Saturday in Kiev. Decrying the Russian deployment as a “provocation,” Mr. Yatsenyuk said, “We call on the government of the Russian Federation to immediately withdraw its troops, return to the place of deployment and stop provoking civil and military confrontation in Ukraine.” | “The presence of Russian troops in Crimea now is unacceptable,” Prime Minister Arseniy P. Yatsenyuk said on Saturday in Kiev. Decrying the Russian deployment as a “provocation,” Mr. Yatsenyuk said, “We call on the government of the Russian Federation to immediately withdraw its troops, return to the place of deployment and stop provoking civil and military confrontation in Ukraine.” |
| On Friday, heavily armed men took up positions at Crimea’s two main airports, and officials in Kiev said soldiers had also seized control of the regional Parliament building and the headquarters of the regional government, in the capital of Simferopol. | On Friday, heavily armed men took up positions at Crimea’s two main airports, and officials in Kiev said soldiers had also seized control of the regional Parliament building and the headquarters of the regional government, in the capital of Simferopol. |
| On Saturday, the men patrolled the perimeter of the Parliament building. There were no signs of panic in Simferopol, where police blocked off a central street but traffic was otherwise moving normally; many shops open amid general calm. | On Saturday, the men patrolled the perimeter of the Parliament building. There were no signs of panic in Simferopol, where police blocked off a central street but traffic was otherwise moving normally; many shops open amid general calm. |
| American officials did not directly confirm a series of public statements by senior Ukrainian officials, including the acting president, Oleksandr V. Turchynov, that Russian troops were being deployed to Crimea in violation of the two countries’ agreements there. | American officials did not directly confirm a series of public statements by senior Ukrainian officials, including the acting president, Oleksandr V. Turchynov, that Russian troops were being deployed to Crimea in violation of the two countries’ agreements there. |
| Mr. Obama, however, cited “reports of military movements taken by the Russian Federation inside of Ukraine,” and he said, “Any violation of Ukrainian sovereignty would be deeply destabilizing.” | Mr. Obama, however, cited “reports of military movements taken by the Russian Federation inside of Ukraine,” and he said, “Any violation of Ukrainian sovereignty would be deeply destabilizing.” |
| “There will be costs,” Mr. Obama said in a hastily arranged statement from the White House. | “There will be costs,” Mr. Obama said in a hastily arranged statement from the White House. |
| The pointed warning came after a day in which military analysts struggled to understand a series of unusual events in Crimea, including a mobilization of armored personnel carriers with Russian markings on the roads of the region’s capital, Simferopol, and a deployment of well-armed, masked gunmen at Crimea’s two main airports. | The pointed warning came after a day in which military analysts struggled to understand a series of unusual events in Crimea, including a mobilization of armored personnel carriers with Russian markings on the roads of the region’s capital, Simferopol, and a deployment of well-armed, masked gunmen at Crimea’s two main airports. |
| “The Russian Federation began an unvarnished aggression against our country,” Mr. Turchynov said in televised remarks on Friday evening. “Under the guise of military exercises, they entered troops into the autonomous Republic of Crimea.” | “The Russian Federation began an unvarnished aggression against our country,” Mr. Turchynov said in televised remarks on Friday evening. “Under the guise of military exercises, they entered troops into the autonomous Republic of Crimea.” |
| He said that Russian forces had captured the regional Parliament and the headquarters of the regional government, and that they had seized other targets, including vital communications hubs, as well as blocked unspecified Ukrainian military assets. | He said that Russian forces had captured the regional Parliament and the headquarters of the regional government, and that they had seized other targets, including vital communications hubs, as well as blocked unspecified Ukrainian military assets. |
| American officials said they believed that unusual helicopter movements over Crimea were evidence that a military intervention was underway, but cautioned that they did not know the scale of the operation or the Russians’ motives. | American officials said they believed that unusual helicopter movements over Crimea were evidence that a military intervention was underway, but cautioned that they did not know the scale of the operation or the Russians’ motives. |
| Russia on Friday denied that it had encroached on Ukrainian territory or would do so. After an emergency meeting on Ukraine at the United Nations Security Council, the Russian ambassador, Vitaly I. Churkin, said that any troop movements were in line with arrangements that allow it to station soldiers in the area. | Russia on Friday denied that it had encroached on Ukrainian territory or would do so. After an emergency meeting on Ukraine at the United Nations Security Council, the Russian ambassador, Vitaly I. Churkin, said that any troop movements were in line with arrangements that allow it to station soldiers in the area. |
| “We have an agreement with Ukraine on the presence of the Russian Black Sea fleet and we operate under this agreement,” Mr. Churkin said. | “We have an agreement with Ukraine on the presence of the Russian Black Sea fleet and we operate under this agreement,” Mr. Churkin said. |
| Adding to the strange tableaux in Crimea, a crowd of about 400 people gathered near the Parliament building in Simferopol to denounce the United States. | |
| Some waved orange and black flags, while others held placards that said “"Free Ukraine from US Occupation” and “The USA works with Fascism.” | |
| One elderly woman held up a photo of President Obama with a red line through it and the caption “Yankee Go Home”. She then helped lead part of the crowd in a chant of “Yankees Go Home.” | |
| The United States and its Western allies have rushed to recognize the legitimacy of the new interim government in Kiev, though numerous questions remain about the votes in the national Parliament to remove Mr. Yanukovych from power. | |
| Elsewhere in Ukraine, there were signs of concern among business leaders over an effort by several European countries, including Austria and Switzerland, to freeze the assets of the ousted president, Viktor F. Yanukovych, members of his family, and other prominent associates. | Elsewhere in Ukraine, there were signs of concern among business leaders over an effort by several European countries, including Austria and Switzerland, to freeze the assets of the ousted president, Viktor F. Yanukovych, members of his family, and other prominent associates. |
| Systems Capital Management Group, the company controlled by Ukraine’s richest man, Rinat Akhmetov, issued a statement saying that its operations were not affected by the freezing of assets. In its statement, the company said that it “operates in full compliance with the law and beyond politics” and that the freezing of assets “have not affected our operations in any way.” | Systems Capital Management Group, the company controlled by Ukraine’s richest man, Rinat Akhmetov, issued a statement saying that its operations were not affected by the freezing of assets. In its statement, the company said that it “operates in full compliance with the law and beyond politics” and that the freezing of assets “have not affected our operations in any way.” |
| Mr. Akhmetov is long-known as a close ally of Mr. Yanukovych and his company’s statement suggested that he wanted to distance himself from the ex-president. On Friday, Mr. Yanukovych held a news conference at a shopping mall in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, where he insisted that he was still the legitimate president of Ukraine and planned to return. | Mr. Akhmetov is long-known as a close ally of Mr. Yanukovych and his company’s statement suggested that he wanted to distance himself from the ex-president. On Friday, Mr. Yanukovych held a news conference at a shopping mall in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, where he insisted that he was still the legitimate president of Ukraine and planned to return. |
| The new government in Kiev has said that Mr. Yanukovych and other top officials are now wanted on charges of mass murder in connection with the deaths of more than 80 people in clashes between anti-government protesters and the authorities late last month. | The new government in Kiev has said that Mr. Yanukovych and other top officials are now wanted on charges of mass murder in connection with the deaths of more than 80 people in clashes between anti-government protesters and the authorities late last month. |
| Mr. Akhmetov’s company said it “remains committed to the common principles of corporate ethics, business transparency and responsibility to our partner and the society and, in particular, does not carry out any joint business activity with Viktor Yanukovych and his family.” | Mr. Akhmetov’s company said it “remains committed to the common principles of corporate ethics, business transparency and responsibility to our partner and the society and, in particular, does not carry out any joint business activity with Viktor Yanukovych and his family.” |