Ukraine parliament delivers ultimatum to Crimea over referendum

Ukraine's parliament has warned the regional assembly in Crimea that it faces dissolution unless it cancels a referendum it has called to join the region to Russia.

A resolution, supported by a parliamentary vote, gave the Crimean parliament until Wednesday to call off the referendum, due to take place on Sunday. The Crimean parliament on Tuesday passed a motion stating that it would become independent in the event of a yes vote and then seek to join the Russian Federation, arguing that "the unilateral declaration of independence of part of a state does not violate any international laws".

Also on Tuesday, the acting Ukrainian president, Oleksander Turchinov, announced that a new national guard would be formed in response to Russian attempts to annex Crimea.

Turchinov said mismanagement of the armed forces under former president Viktor Yanukovych meant that the Ukrainian military had to be rebuilt "effectively from scratch". The acting defence minister said the country had only 6,000 combat-ready infantry compared with more than 200,000 Russian troops on its eastern borders.

Hopes of a diplomatic solution to the crisis were dealt a blow after the US secretary of state, John Kerry, abandoned a visit to Moscow to discuss the crisis and the US and Russia traded accusations over who was to blame.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/11/ukraine-parliament-ultimatum-crimea-referendum

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