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Crimean Authorities Work Under Barrel Of A Gun, Ukraine's Acting President Oleksander Turchinov Says

Ukraine's Acting Prez: Crimean Authorities Work Under Barrel Of A Gun
Reuters
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Ukrainian parliament speaker Oleksandr Turchynov answers media questions after an urgent parliament session in Kiev, Ukraine, Sunday, March 2, 2014. Ukraine's new prime minister urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull back his military Sunday in the conflict between the two countries, warning that "we are on the brink of disaster." The comments from Arseniy Yatsenyuk came as a convoy of Russian troops rolled toward Simferopol, the capital of Ukraine's Crimea region, a day after Russian forces took over the strategic Black Sea peninsula without firing a shot. (AP Photo/Andrew Kravchenko, Pool)

KIEV, March 6 (Reuters) - The pro-Russian authorities in Ukraine's Crimea region are illegitimate and working under the barrel of a gun, Acting President Oleksander Turchinov said on Thursday.

"The authorities in Crimea are totally illegitimate, both the parliament and the government. They are forced to work under the barrel of a gun and all their decisions are dictated by fear and are illegal," his spokeswoman quoted him as saying.

She said Turchinov would issue a statement later on thursday on Crimea, whose parliament voted on Thursday to join the Russian Federation.

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