| BBC News | - |
Around
93% of voters in Crimea have backed joining Russia and seceding from
Ukraine, according to exit polls quoted by Russian news agencies.
Crimea exit poll: Around 93% back Russia union
James Reynolds is at a polling station in
Simferopol: "There's no option on this ballot paper for people to keep
things as they are"
Around
93% of voters in Crimea have backed joining Russia and seceding from
Ukraine, according to exit polls quoted by Russian news agencies.
Polls closed at 18:00 GMT and officials hailed a "record" turnout. Preliminary results are expected within hours. Many opponents boycotted the vote, which has been rejected by the US and the EU as illegitimate.
Pro-Russian forces took control of Crimea in February after Ukraine's pro-Moscow president was overthrown.
The West has declared the vote illegal while Moscow says it will respect the outcome
A high turnout was reported at some polling stations
Crimea's authorities describe the Kiev government as "fascist", urging residents to vote for union with Russia
Food was on offer at this Simferopol polling station
A second question asked whether Ukraine should return to its status under the 1992 constitution, which would give the region much greater autonomy.
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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
There was no option for those who wanted the constitutional situation to remain unchanged.
Ethnic Russians make up 58.5% of the region's population, and many of them were expected to vote for joining Russia. There are 1.5 million eligible voters and unconfirmed reports put the turnout in Sunday's vote at 80%.
Sergei Aksyonov, who was installed as Crimea's regional government leader after Russia's military takeover, said the people had voted freely and a session of parliament would take place on Monday.
"We will do everything as quickly as possible, but at the same time we will observe all legal procedures," he told Interfax news agency.
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Crisis timeline
- 21 Nov 2013: President Viktor Yanukovych abandons an EU deal
- Dec: Pro-EU protesters occupy Kiev city hall and Independence Square
- 20 Feb 2014: At least 88 people killed in 48 hours of bloodshed in Kiev
- 22 Feb: Mr Yanukovych flees; parliament votes to remove him and calls election
- 27-28 Feb: Pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings in Crimean capital Simferopol
- 6 Mar: Crimea's parliament asks to join Russia and sets referendum for 16 March
- 15 Mar: Russia vetoes UN Security Council resolution condemning Crimea independence referendum
But White House spokesman Jay Carney condemned the vote as "dangerous and destabilising".
"As the United States and our allies have made clear,
military intervention and violation of international law will bring
increasing costs for Russia - not only due to measures imposed by the
United States and our allies but also as a direct result of Russia's own
destabilising actions," he said in a statement.The European Union said the vote was "illegal and illegitimate and its outcome will not be recognised". EU foreign ministers are due to meet on Monday and are expected to consider imposing sanctions on Russian officials.
One voter, Olga Koziko, told the BBC that she was voting for secession because she did not want to be governed by "those Nazis who came to power in Kiev".
"Russia will defend us and protect us," the schoolteacher said.
Away from the Crimea region, unrest continued in the south-east Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
Pro-Russian protesters stormed the prosecutor's building shouting "Donetsk is a Russian city", and then broke into the local security services headquarters for the second time in two days.
They later dispersed but promised to return on Monday.
Steve Rosenberg reports on Pro-Russia protesters in Donetsk
The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin had told German Chancellor Angela Merkel by phone he was concerned by escalating tensions in Donetsk, blaming "radical groups" which had the consent of Kiev.
Mr Putin told Mrs Merkel that Sunday's referendum was legal and Moscow would respect the result.
The German chancellor's spokesman said she had proposed expanding the presence of international observers from the OSCE in eastern Ukraine and that Mr Putin had welcomed the plan.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk warned that the authorities would track down separatist "ringleaders".
"We will find all of them - if it takes one year, two years - and bring them to justice and try them in Ukrainian and international courts," he said.
In other developments:
- Ukraine's acting Defence Minister Ihor Tenyukh said a temporary truce had been agreed with Russia until 21 March in which the blockade of Ukrainian military units in Crimea would be lifted
- Kiev accused Russian forces of seizing the village of Strilkove, just north of Crimea, describing it as a "military invasion"
Moscow's main ally China abstained, ensuring Russia's isolation.
The Crimean region was part of Russia until 1954 and Russia's Black Sea fleet is based in Ukrainian ports.
But Moscow has signed agreements promising to uphold Ukraine's territorial integrity.
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