Russia is extremely concerned by the latest events in Crimea, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“Unidentified armed men sent from Kyiv attempted to seize the building of the Interior Ministry of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in the early hours of March 1. The treacherous provocation resulted in casualties. Self-defense units’ resolute actions helped avert the attempt to seize the Interior Ministry building. These events confirm the desire of well-known political circles in Kyiv to destabilize the situation on the peninsula,” says the statement available on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Web site.
“We are calling on those who issue such orders from Kyiv to exercise restraint. We view the attempts to further escalate the already tense situation in Crimea as extremely irresponsible,” it said.
