Russian armored personnel carriers are on their way to Crimea, and Ukrainian officials are calling it a “military invasion and occupation.”
A convoy of nine Russian armored personnel carriers and a truck on a road between the port city of Sevastopol and the regional capital, Sinferopol, the Associated Press reported.
“I can only describe this as a military invasion and occupation,” Ukraine’s newly named interior minister, Arsen Avakov, wrote in an online statement.
Meanwhile, Russians armed with rifles and wearing military uniforms stormed into Crimea’s main airport and took up positions on Friday. Agence France-Presse confirmed that 2,000 armed Russian were airlifted into the area.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said movements of armored vehicles belonging to the Russian Black Sea Fleet were prompted by the need to ensure security of its base and didn’t contradict the lease terms, Haartez reported.
PHOTOS: Enemy at the gates: Ukraine under siege
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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