KIEV, Ukraine — Faced with unrelenting pressure to surrender, Ukraine began to withdraw its military from the breakaway territory of Crimea, a day after Russia President Vladimir Putin formalized the annexation of the Black Sea peninsula and after a Ukraine soldier was killed in by pro-Russian militiamen in Simferopol, one of Crimea's main cities.
The death marked the first bloodshed since Russian occupation began on Feb. 27. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry in Kiev issued a statement on Tuesday saying its troops had been authorized to fire their weapons to defend themselves following the incident, but had not yet done so on Wednesday.
See also: 2 Reported Killed in First Bloodshed of Russia-Ukraine Crisis
For three weeks, thousands of Ukrainian officers have been trapped inside their own bases and aboard their own navy vessels, surrounded by elite Russian soldiers in nondescript uniforms armed with automatic firearms and sniper rifles and aided by less disciplined pro-Russian Crimean militiamen. Many have faced psychological pressure, enduring several ultimatums issued by Russian and militia units to surrender their weapons and compounds, or else face raids. Still, they have not defected.
Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Secretary Andriy Parubiy said on Wednesday the new government was drawing up plans to evacuate its troops from Crimea and would put its army on full alert. He also said that the country would hold joint military exercises with the United States and Britain as planned. In a sense, however, it began to appear that Ukraine had given up on Crimea, instead focusing efforts on bolstering its military and national guard to protect the mainland from further Russian invasion.
His comments contrasted with those from acting Defense Minister Ihor Tenyukh, who said Ukraine’s troops in Crimea would not withdraw from the peninsula despite Russian occupation and annexation of the region.
Earlier in the day, Russian soldiers and pro-Russian militiamen raided Ukraine’s naval headquarters in Crimea and at least two other military compounds. The groups also detained Ukraine’s navy commander, Serhiy Haiduk, according to the Defense Ministry. Haiduk was reportedly led away in handcuffs. As of Wednesday evening he had not been released.
Ukraine’s interim President Oleksandr Turchynov responded to the unlawful imprisonment of Haiduk Wednesday, saying the Ukrainian authorities would give the pro-Russian forces in Crimea until 9 p.m. Kiev time to release Haiduk, as well as other officers taken hostage, and cease hostile actions, or else Ukraine would take “adequate measures, including those of a technical and technological character.”
See also: Under the Gun, Crimea Votes Overwhelmingly to Secede From Ukraine
Many took that to mean that Kiev would cut off power and water supplies to the peninsula, which relies heavily on the mainland for resources. But 9 p.m. came and went without action.
Russia’s move to annex Crimea has provoked the ire of the West, which in recent days has slapped sanctions against members of Putin’s government as well as former Ukrainian officials it deems responsible for the state of affairs (such as deposed Ukraine president Viktor Yanukovich). But sanctions have been met with jeers from emboldened Russian lawmakers, who quipped that to be placed on the American blacklist was like winning a “political Oscar.”
Seeking further ways to pressure Russia, British Prime Minister David Cameron urged the world’s leading industrialized countries to consider dismissing Russia from the G-8 in an address to Parliament on Wednesday. Britain, the U.S. and other members comprising the G-7 are set to meet in The Hague next week to discuss stricter measures against Russia, which will not be represented at the gathering.
“I think it’s important that we move together with our allies and partners and I think we should be discussing whether or not to expel Russia permanently from the G-8 if further steps are taken,” Cameron said. “That’s the meeting we’ll have on Monday and I think that’s the right way to proceed.”
Meanwhile, in Moscow, authorities began issuing passports to Crimean residents on Wednesday, said Konstantin Romodanovsky, head of the Federal Migration Service in Russia, the Russian news agency ITAR-TASS reported. Romodanovsky said Crimeans had become Russian citizens Tuesday.
In Kiev, authorities debated implementing a visa regime for Russians.
"The Foreign Minister has been ordered [by the security chief] to introduce visa regulations with Russia," Parubiy said at a briefing on Wednesday, indicating that, in response to the rising tensions, Russians visiting Ukraine would have to obtain prior clearance.
Christopher J. Miller is an editor at English-language newspaper the Kyiv Post in Ukraine.