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| Ukraine crisis: Crimea parliament asks to join Russia | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| MPs in Crimea have asked Moscow to allow the southern Ukrainian region to become part of the Russian Federation. | |
| Parliament said if its request was granted, Crimean citizens could give their view in a referendum on 16 March. | |
| A government minister in Kiev said it would be unconstitutional for Crimea to join Russia. | |
| Crimea, a region whose population is mostly ethnic Russian, has been at the centre of tensions following the fall of Ukraine's pro-Moscow president. | Crimea, a region whose population is mostly ethnic Russian, has been at the centre of tensions following the fall of Ukraine's pro-Moscow president. |
| Pro-Russian and Russian forces have been in de facto control of the peninsula, which already enjoys a degree of autonomy from Kiev, for several days. | Pro-Russian and Russian forces have been in de facto control of the peninsula, which already enjoys a degree of autonomy from Kiev, for several days. |
| The announcement from Crimea's parliament comes as EU leaders meet in Brussels to discuss how to respond to Russia's troop deployment on Ukrainian soil. | |
| Formal request | Formal request |
| The Crimean parliament resolved "to enter into the Russian Federation with the rights of a subject of the Russian Federation". | The Crimean parliament resolved "to enter into the Russian Federation with the rights of a subject of the Russian Federation". |
| In a statement on its website, parliament said it had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin "to start the procedure" of formally allowing Crimea to join the Russian Federation. | |
| The Kremlin said President Putin was aware of developments in the Crimean parliament, but no response has yet been made public. | The Kremlin said President Putin was aware of developments in the Crimean parliament, but no response has yet been made public. |
| If Russia agrees to Crimea's request, the Crimean people will be asked two questions in the 16 March referendum, the statement says | |
| Ukraine's interim Economy Minister Pavlo Sheremeta, speaking in Kiev soon after the announcement, said: "We're not working out what to do if Crimea joins the Russian Federation because we believe it's unconstitutional." | |
| The move by Crimea's parliament will significantly increase tensions as Western diplomats try to draw political leaders in Ukraine and Russia into negotiations to prevent a full Russian invasion of Ukraine, the BBC's Richard Galpin reports from Moscow. | The move by Crimea's parliament will significantly increase tensions as Western diplomats try to draw political leaders in Ukraine and Russia into negotiations to prevent a full Russian invasion of Ukraine, the BBC's Richard Galpin reports from Moscow. |