US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power wrote on Twitter:
The proposed referendum on the future of #Crimea would violate the Ukranian constitution. The U.S. will not recognize its results.
Eastern Ukraine's Babuchkas, older women who have worked hard to raise families, are said to be the real power in these parts of the world.
Ukranian military commander told ITV News the Russian men "have come to protect us. So why are their guns pointing towards our base?"
Fear is shaping events in Crimea, the multi-ethnic peninsula that finds itself at the heart of a tussle between great powers.