Russian parliament approves troop deployment in Ukraine
There were fierce clashes between pro- and anti-Russian protesters in the eastern city of Kharkiv
Russia's upper house of parliament has approved President Putin's request for Russian forces to be used in Ukraine.
He had asked that Russian forces be used "until the normalisation of the political situation in the country".Russia's Black Sea Fleet is based in the Ukrainian region of Crimea, where many ethnic Russians live.
Kiev has reacted angrily to days of military movements in Crimea, accusing Moscow of trying to provoke the new government into an armed conflict.
Interim President Olexander Turchynov has called an emergency session of his security chiefs.
Russia's Vladimir Putin submitted the request for troops "in connection with the extraordinary situation in Ukraine and the threat to the lives of Russian citizens", the Kremlin said.
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Crimea
- Autonomous republic within Ukraine
- Transferred from Russia in 1954
- Ethnic Russians - 58.5%*
- Ethnic Ukrainians - 24.4%*
- Crimean Tatars - 12.1%*
- Source: Ukraine census 2001
The BBC's Richard Galpin in
Moscow says it is potentially significant that the request was for
deployment in Ukraine as a whole, and not specifically for flash-points
such as Crimea.
The upper house went into a special session almost
immediately after Mr Putin made the request, in what seems to have been a
carefully co-ordinated series of events during the dayEarlier, the lower house of parliament had urged the president to take whatever measures were necessary to "stabilise" the situation in Crimea.
During the upper house debate, one legislator accused US President Barack Obama of crossing "a red line" with his comments that there would be costs if Russia intervened militarily in Ukraine.
The upper house has recommended that the Russian ambassador the US should be recalled, although the decision lies with Mr Putin.
'Provocation' The request follow days of military activity in Crimea during which unidentified armed men moved in to take over the regional parliament, state television and telecommunications hubs.
Soldiers from Russia's Black Sea Fleet, which is based in Crimea, are reported to be guarding some administrative buildings and military bases.
Amid the closure of airspace over Crimea's regional capital Simferopol on Friday evening, there were unconfirmed reports that Russian planes were flying in thousands of troops.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Ihor Tenyukh said on Saturday there are now an extra 6,000 Russian troops in Crimea, alongside an additional 30 armoured vehicles.
The build-up of Russia's military in Crimea was evident even before Saturday's vote in Moscow to send extra troops
The presence of Russia has been welcomed by many of Crimea's ethnic Russians
Pro-Russian populations in several
eastern and southern cities across Ukraine took to the streets on
Saturday to voice their opposition to the new interim government in Kiev
These activists in Donetsk tried to hoist the Russian flag over an administrative building
But the protests turned bloody in Kharkiv
after these pro-Kiev activists clashed with Russian supporters who were
trying to enter an administrative office
Meanwhile, in Kiev's Independence Square,
people gathered for the funeral of one of the 88 people killed in
violent clashes with police that led to the departure of President
Viktor Yanukovych a week ago
The newly-elected pro-Moscow leader of Crimea, Sergiy Aksyonov, earlier said he had appealed to Mr Putin for help to ensure peace on the peninsula - a request which the Kremlin said it would "not leave unnoticed".
Events in Crimea have angered the new interim government in Kiev - which does not recognise the province's new leadership - and has alarmed Western leaders.
President Turchynov accused Russia of trying to provoke Kiev into "armed conflict", but said they would not react.
US President Barack Obama said on Friday that "any violation of Ukraine sovereignty... would be deeply destabilising".
He warned of the "costs" of any Russian intervention in the Ukraine and commended the interim government in Kiev for its "restraint".
Meanwhile, big pro-Russian rallies are being held in several Ukrainian cities outside Crimea.
- In Donetsk, Mr Yanukovych's traditional stronghold, demonstrators from a crowd of some 7,000 tried unsuccessfully to occupy the regional administration building, raising a Russian tricolour on a nearby flag-post
- In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-biggest city, scuffles broke out when protesters with Russian flags tried to occupy the regional administration building
- In Mariupol, in the south-east, hundreds of protesters carrying Russian flags gathered outside the city council in eastern and southern Ukraine.
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