Pro-Russia leader of Crimea claims military control, coordinates with Russian soldiers
Crimea’s pro-Russian leader on Saturday claimed control of the military and police there, saying soldiers from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet are guarding government buildings now and his regional government is coordinating directly with them.
Early Saturday, armed men in helmets and green fatigues replaced local police in front of the regional parliament.
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Prime Minister Serhiy Aksyonov appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin for help maintaining “peace and tranquility.”
Moscow politicians moved in what appeared to be well-choreographed steps after the request.
First, Sergei Naryshkin, speaker of the lower house, said Russian parliamentarians had appealed to Putin “to take measures to stabilize the situation in Crimea and use all available means to protect the people of Crimea from tyranny and violence.”
Then came Valentina Matviyenko, chairman of the upper house.
“Perhaps in this situation we could grant the Crimean government’s request,” she said, “and send a limited contingent there to provide security for the Black Sea Fleet and Russian citizens living in Crimea.”
She said the decision was up to Putin, but added, “We should protect the people.”
Aksyonov, who became prime minister Thursday, belongs to the Russian Unity party in Crimea, which won about 4 percent of the vote in the last parliamentary election.
In making his plea, Aksyonov noted that the central government of Ukraine does not control the situation in the region, as evidenced by the “unidentified” armed men and military equipment that have become so visible.
The Russian foreign ministry said “unidentified gunmen directed from Kiev” had tried to capture the Crimean interior ministry headquarters. Calling the attempt a “treacherous provocation” that resulted in casualties, Moscow said that “decisive action” had repelled the “vigilante groups.”
“This confirms the desire of prominent political circles in Kiev to destabilize the peninsula,” the foreign ministry said, in a statement posted on its website. “We encourage those who give such orders from Kiev to show restraint. We believe it is irresponsible to continue whipping up the already tense situation in the Crimea.”
But there seemed to be little evidence to support the allegation that such an attack had taken place.
Igor Aveytskiy, who was named by the Kiev government to serve as chief of Crimea’s national police, said in an interview that “all was peaceful” at the Ministry of Internal Affairs building Friday night.
“Conditions are good. The situation is under control,” he said, though he would not answer questions about Russian troops.
Members of a pro-Russia self defense militia in front of that building said there were no violent clashes. “It’s all rumors, all lies,” said Mikhail Amirov, who works at an internet cafe and was standing guard at the interior ministry headquarters last night.
Heightened Russian military activity in Crimea on Friday prompted a stern warning from President Obama and a deepening sense of crisis among the leaders of the new Ukrainian government in Kiev.
U.S. officials said Russian troops had entered Crimea, and Obama told reporters Friday evening that he was “deeply concerned by reports of military movements” and that there “will be costs for any military intervention.”
Earlier in the day, the new Ukrainian government said that hundreds of soldiers in green camouflage, without insignia but carrying military-style automatic rifles, had taken over two airports in Crimea. Regularly scheduled flights continued, at least until nightfall, when the airspace above Crimea, a region of Ukraine with deep ties to Russia, was suddenly declared closed.
Internet videos of Russian military helicopters flying over Crimea’s muddy winter fields went viral Friday. Russian IL-76 planes suspected of carrying 2,000 troops landed at a military base in Gvardiysky, near the regional capital of Simferopol, according to Crimea’s ATR television.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Moscow had informed Ukraine that it would be moving armored units from its Black Sea navy base in the city of Sevastopol deeper into Crimean territory to protect its operations.
In his remarks, Obama avoided confirming the Russian military movements. But U.S. officials said that confirmation of an influx of troops had prompted the president to speak.
“Any violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity would be deeply destabilizing, which is not in the interests of Ukraine, Russia or Europe,” Obama said.
Whether the Russians were coming, or already here, consumed an anxious new government in Kiev and the residents of Crimea.
The armed men at the airports refused to answer any questions. Residents and outside experts speculated that they might be local paramilitaries, security contractors or even members of an anti-riot police unit that was blamed for the deaths of protesters who packed Kiev’s Independence Square in recent months, leading to the ouster last week of President Viktor Yanukovych. The unit, called the Berkut, was disbanded by the Ukrainian parliament this week and then welcomed to Crimea as heroes.
The men also could have been Russian troops, including members from special anti-terrorist squads used to protect Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, which is anchored here. Units from the Russian fleet are often seen on the highways here.
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