Following the events of the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution, a secession crisis began on Ukraines Crimean Peninsula. In late February 2014, unmarked armed forces began to take over the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine. Experts identified the gunmen to be Russian Special Forces[41] and other paramilitaries. Russia at the time insisted that the forces did not include Russian troops stationed in the area,[42] but only local self-defense forces.[43][44] The local population and the media referred to them as martians or little green men.[45][46] On 17 April, Russian president Vladimir Putin admitted that Russian troops were in fact active in Crimea during the referendum, claiming this facilitated self-determination for the region.[47][48] Russia has rejected the legitimacy of the interim Ukrainian government in favor of ousted-President Viktor Yanukovych,[a] whose request for intervention has also been cited.[50][51] Russia has accused the United States and the European Union of funding and directing the Ukrainian revolution.[52] The Ukrainian military reaction has included a mobilization of Ukraines armed forces and reserves. Western media reported that as of 3 March, Russia had stated that its troops would stay until the political situation was normalised[53][54] however Russia has denied that its troops were involved in the conflict at the time.[55] The Supreme Council of Crimea voted to secede from Ukraine,[56] and held on 16 March a controversial referendum where a reported 95% (81% turnout) voted to join the Russian Federation.[57][58] On 27 March 2014, a United Nations General Assembly resolution approved by 100 member states (11 against, 58 abstentions) declared the Crimea referendum invalid.[59][60] Internationally, the United States,[61] the United Kingdom,[62] France,[63] Germany,[64] Italy,[65] Poland,[66] Canada,[67] Japan,[68] The Netherlands,[69] South Korea,[70] Georgia,[71] Moldova,[72] Turkey,[73] Australia[74] and the European Union as a whole condemned Russia, accusing it of breaking international law and violating Ukrainian sovereignty.[75] Many of these countries implemented sanctions against Russia or Russian individuals or companies, with some retort from Russia. China,[76][77][78] India[79][80] and many developing countries remained relatively uninvolved or voiced support for Russias actions. In mid-April, the US[3] accused Russia of responsibility for the unrest in eastern Ukraine, which the Russian Foreign Ministry also denied.[81] On 17 April 2014, Putin acknowledged that the unmarked troops in Crimea were Russian but denied that separatists in eastern areas were.[82] Ukraine and Russia backed a joint call for militant groups to disarm,[83] and later criticized each other for its failure.[84] As the crisis continued unabated, new sanctions were adopted amid claims that key separatists such as Igor Strelkov were Russian agents.[85] US and Ukrainian officials claimed to have intercepted Russian communications and other evidence of coordination with the separatists.[86] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Russian_military_intervention_in_Ukraine
Posted on: Fri, 20 Jun 2014 01:30:25 +0000
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