Ukraine’s fledgling government ordered troops to withdraw from Crimea on Monday, ending days of wavering as Russian troops consolidate control over the peninsula.
Russian forces have been systematically seizing Ukrainian ships and military installations in Crimea, including a naval base near the eastern Crimean port of Feodosia, where two wounded servicemen were taken captive on Monday and as many as 80 were detained on-site, Ukrainian officials said.
With the storming of at least three military facilities over the past three days alone, it wasn’t clear how many Ukrainian troops remained on the peninsula. Acting President Oleksandr Turchnynov said the Defense Ministry was instructed to redeploy all servicemen in Crimea to Ukraine’s mainland, in remarks confirmed by his office.
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