Crimea Voted For Ukraine

Crimea kicked off celebrations that will see fireworks and concerts today to mark a year since a controversial vote to join Russia that the West blasted as an illegal takeover.

Russia is gearing up to celebrate the one-year anniversary on Monday of Crimea voting to leave Ukraine and join the Russian state in a takeover blasted as illegal in the West but seen at home as a triumph for Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday for a package of aid and sanctions in response to Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region, and sent the measure to the White House for President Barack Obama to sign into law.

European Union foreign ministers adopted sanctions Monday against 21 Russians and Ukrainians deemed responsible for a contested independence referendum in Crimea.

A top Chinese diplomat repeated Beijing's call for calm and restraint in Ukraine on Monday, but ducked comment on a referendum in Crimea after the region's Moscow-backed leaders declared a 96-percent vote in favour of joining Russia.

As Russian flags fluttered in the breeze and retirees grew weepy at the thought of reuniting with Russia, residents of Ukraine's Crimea region held a secession vote on Sunday.

Crimea braced for a referendum on Sunday on whether to leave Ukraine and join Russia, escalating a Cold War-style security crisis on Europe's eastern edge that has left diplomacy in disarray.

The flashpoint Crimean peninsula's parliament voted on Tuesday for independence from Ukraine ahead of a referendum on joining Russia while Washington and Moscow locked horns in one of their fiercest clashes since the Cold War.

Crimea kicked off celebrations that will see fireworks and concerts today to mark a year since a controversial vote to join Russia that the West blasted as an illegal takeover.

Russia is gearing up to celebrate the one-year anniversary on Monday of Crimea voting to leave Ukraine and join the Russian state in a takeover blasted as illegal in the West but seen at home as a triumph for Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday for a package of aid and sanctions in response to Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region, and sent the measure to the White House for President Barack Obama to sign into law.

European Union foreign ministers adopted sanctions Monday against 21 Russians and Ukrainians deemed responsible for a contested independence referendum in Crimea.

A top Chinese diplomat repeated Beijing's call for calm and restraint in Ukraine on Monday, but ducked comment on a referendum in Crimea after the region's Moscow-backed leaders declared a 96-percent vote in favour of joining Russia.

As Russian flags fluttered in the breeze and retirees grew weepy at the thought of reuniting with Russia, residents of Ukraine's Crimea region held a secession vote on Sunday.

Crimea braced for a referendum on Sunday on whether to leave Ukraine and join Russia, escalating a Cold War-style security crisis on Europe's eastern edge that has left diplomacy in disarray.

The flashpoint Crimean peninsula's parliament voted on Tuesday for independence from Ukraine ahead of a referendum on joining Russia while Washington and Moscow locked horns in one of their fiercest clashes since the Cold War.