State Duma speaker: we will support democratic choice of Crimean population
MOSCOW. March 7 (Interfax) - Russian State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin has announced Russia's readiness to respect any choice to be made by Crimean citizens in the March 16 referendum.
"We will treat this historic choice of the Crimean population with respect," Naryshkin said at a meeting with the autonomous republic's delegation in the State Duma on Friday.
"We will support the free and democratic choice of the population of Crimea and Sevastopol," he said.
Moscow is well aware of the steps being taken by the Crimean authorities, including the parliament of the autonomous republic, Naryshkin said.
"We realize that this decision was also made due to the acute political crisis that is taking place in Ukraine. But they also seek to protect citizens' rights and freedoms and simply defend human lives," he said.
Obviously, there are historical, spiritual and other motives behind this decision, he said. Russian parliamentarians have closely been following this acute political crisis in Ukraine, Naryshkin said.
"We issued an official address to deputies of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and called on them to bring the situation back into a constitutional and legal framework, stop this mayhem and violence targeting both ordinary citizens of Ukraine and their political opponents," the State Duma speaker said.
Russian MPs also urged political figures and other officials in Western countries not to "add fuel to the fire of this crisis" and not to support the radical nationalistic forces of Ukraine that were fighting and continue to fight for power, he added.
Russian parliamentarians themselves visited Crimea and saw the situation there in general, he said.
"In this context, the State Duma Council, acting on behalf of all deputies, adopted a statement and an address to the president of the Russian Federation, asking him to help restore order and peace and make every effort to protect citizens' rights and freedoms and ensure the security of citizens both in Crimea and the southeastern regions of Ukraine," Naryshkin said. Crimean Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Konstantynov heads the autonomous republic's delegation to Moscow.
"No matter what happens to us, the referendum will go ahead and the situation will be clarified for Crimean citizens," Konstantynov said.
It is obvious that the country that Crimea once loved no longer exists, he said.
"We do not understand this new entity. It is illegitimate. We are scared of it," Konstantynov said.
All of the decisions being adopted by the autonomous republic today are legitimate, he said.
"We are heading in the right direction," he said.
The Crimean Supreme Council's decision that Crimea should become a part of Russia is historic, Konstantynov said.
"There is just one nuance - will Russia agree to accept us?" he said.
