Ukrainian Navy chief defects to Crimea
Iran Press TV
Sun Mar 2, 2014 9:23PM GMT
Head of the Ukrainian Navy Rear Admiral Denis Berezovsky has switched allegiance to the Crimea region amid a growing tension between Russia and the West over the semi-autonomous territory.
Berezovsky declared his pledge of allegiance on Sunday as he was standing next to Crimea's regional Prime Minister Sergey Aksenov.
Russia's forces have been consolidating their hold on Crimea, which is home to its Black Sea Fleet.
In response, Ukraine has ordered a full military mobilization with Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, warning that the country is 'on the brink of disaster.'
On Saturday, the upper house of the Russian parliament unanimously approved President Vladimir Putin's request to deploy troops into the Crimea.
'The Duma Council adopted an appeal to the president of Russia, in which parliamentarians are calling on the president to take measures to stabilize the situation in Crimea and use all available means to protect the people of the Crimea from tyranny and violence,' Lower House Speaker Sergey Naryshkin said.
The development came after Aksenov asked Putin to help restore peace and calm in the region.
Ukraine has been gripped by unrest since November 2013, when ousted president, Viktor Yanukovych, refrained from signing an Association Agreement with the European Union in favor of closer ties with Russia.
On February 23, amid rising violence in Ukraine, the parliament ousted Yanukovych and named Oleksandr Turchynov, the legislature's speaker, as interim president.
MOL/MAM/AS
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