Crimea assembly declares independence from Ukraine

Pro-Moscow lawmakers in Crimea voted for independence from Ukraine on Tuesday, March 11, in a precursor to a referendum this weekend for the region to become part of Russia. The local assembly approved a declaration of independence for the autonomous republic of Crimea with 78 out of 81 lawmakers voting in favor. The move by the parliament, which has been declared illegal by the new government in Kiev, appeared to be aimed at creating a legal framework for joining Russia as a sovereign state. The latest escalation of Europe’s worst crisis in decades came moments after ousted pro-Kremlin leader Viktor Yanukovych defiantly vowed to return to Kiev from Russia and declared he was still the leader of the ex-Soviet country. On Tuesday, March 11, pro-Russian militants ordered a suspension of all flights in or out of Crimea’s main airport in Simferopol, except those connecting to Moscow. Militants have taken over air traffic control at the airport and a flight that took off from Kiev on Tuesday was forced to turn back after being refused permission to land.


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