The Ukrainian government announced that it is withdrawing its troops from Crimea. The announcement comes one day after Russian forces, which have occupied the peninsula since the Ukrainian parliament impeached former president Viktor Yanukovych, seized Ukrainian military bases. Ukrainian military units have been outnumbered by the Russian forces since the Russian occupation began. One Ukrainian general died on Tuesday when Russian troops seized a military base in Simferopol.
Following the death in Simferopol, Ukraine's acting government bashed the move by Russian troops, asserting that Russia had formally started a war. (Russian president Vladimir Putin does have permission to formally use military force in Crimea.) The announcement of withdrawing troops from Crimea is a sharp departure from Kiev's previous rhetoric and is largely seen as a retreat in order to keep the peace in the region.
On Sunday, the citizens of Crimea voted to secede from Ukraine and join Russia. However, Ukraine and Western nations denounced the referendum as unconstitutional and refused to recognize the result. Putin cited a referendum in Kosovo as the international legal basis for the vote. Regradless, Crimea was incorporated into Russia on Tuesday.
No comments:
Post a Comment