Turchynov suspends Crimean Supreme Council decision on referendum

Ukraine's acting President and Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksandr Turchynov has signed decree No. 261/2014 on the termination of the effect of Crimean Supreme Council resolution No. 1702-6/14 of March 6, 2014 on the holding of an all-Crimean referendum.

A respective decree of March 7 has been published on the Web site of the acting head of state.

The decree, in particular, points to irregularities committed during the adoption of the resolution by the Crimean parliament. Thus, the provisions of the resolution do not comply with a number of provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine, among them Article 2 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which stipulates that Ukraine's sovereignty extends to the whole of its territory, the territory of Ukraine within its present borders is integral and inviolable; Article 134, according to which the Autonomous Republic of Crimea is an integral part of Ukraine and within the powers defined by the Constitution of Ukraine, resolves issues related to its competence; Article 133 of the Constitution of Ukraine, according to which the city of Sevastopol and Crimea are part of Ukraine, as well as other administrative-territorial units that make up the system of administrative-territorial structure of Ukraine.

The decree comes into force from the date of its publication.