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Simferopol

Sergei Aksyonov, Crimea's pro-Russian prime minister, stands as a member of a pro-Russian self defense unit takes an oath to Crimea government in Simferopol on March 10, 2014. Russian forces consolidated their hold on Ukraine's Crimea peninsula on Monday,

Meet the paramilitary leader who claims to be running Crimea

Global Politics

The self-declared prime minister of Crime is a wrestler, once sold umbrellas and cigarettes, and is accused of having worked for the mafia. In the last month, he organized a pro-Russian paramilitary force that quickly took charge when Russian forces intervened in Crimea.The self-declared prime minister of Crime is a wrestler, once sold umbrellas and cigarettes, and is accused of having worked for the mafia. In the last month, he organized a pro-Russian paramilitary force that quickly took charge when Russian forces intervened in Crimea.

Olesya is an ethnic Russian in Crimea. She says she loves Russia, and thinks of it as a big brother to Ukraine. "But now they are violating my rights," she says.

This Ukrainian thought of Russia as a big brother. Until they intervened in Crimea

Conflict & Justice
Protestors in the Crimean city of Simferopol come out support of the new government in Kiev.

Russian troops are stirring ethnic tensions that could tear Crimea apart

Conflict & Justice
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