Armed men smashed a Russian military truck through the gates of a Ukrainian missile defense post in the Crimean peninsula.
The men negotiated with the base’s commanders as soldiers sheltered in their barracks Friday. No shots have been reported.
Earlier Friday, Ukraine’s Interim President Oleksandr Turchynov signed a decree canceling a planned referendum on Crimea joining Russia.
A day earlier,Crimea’s Moscow-backed legislature voted for the peninsula to become part of Russia and scheduled a referendum on the issue for March 16.
Ukraine’s interim prime minister says that “no one in the civilized world” will recognize the referendum’s results.
Arseniy Yatsenyuk says he wants to “warn separatists” and others he describes as “traitors of the Ukrainian state” that their decisions are “unlawful” and “unconstitutional.” U.S. and European leaders also called the referendum illegal.
Crimean officials fired back Friday, saying the vote will go forward.
Source-VOA
