克里米亞爲公投做準備

The chief of Crimea's election commission, Myhkailo Malyshev, said Monday he is moving ahead with preparations for next Sunday's referendum on unification with Russia. He said all registered Crimean voters are eligible to vote.

Russian forces have tightened their grip on Crimea, as authorities in the breakaway territory push their plan to join Moscow.

Ukraine's interim prime minister vowed Sunday not to give up "a single centimeter" of territory. Arseniy Yatsenyuk addressed supporters who rallied in Kyiv to celebrate the 200th birthday of Ukrainian poet and national hero Taras Shevchenko.

Mr. Yatsenyuk is to meet Wednesday with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington to discuss the standoff over Crimea, a strategic peninsula in southern Ukraine with a Russian-speaking majority.

A Russian lawmaker said the Kremlin had set aside $1.1 billion to rebuild Crimea's industrial infrastructure if the disputed region votes in a March 16 referendum to join Russia.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call Sunday the planned referendum is illegal and violates Ukraine's constitution.克里米亞選舉委員會主席馬利舍夫星期一說，他正在推動下星期日有關併入俄羅斯的全民公投的準備工作。

俄羅斯軍隊加強了對克里米亞的控制，與此同時克里米亞當局正在推動脫離烏克蘭加入俄羅斯的計劃。

星期天，烏克蘭臨時政府總理亞採紐克誓言不會放棄一寸國土。亞採紐克向支持者們發表講話，他們在基輔集會慶祝烏克蘭詩人和民族英雄塔拉斯·舍普琴科誕辰200週年。

亞採紐克將於星期三在華盛頓會晤美國總統奧巴馬，討論克里米亞的對峙局面。具有戰略意義的克里米亞半島位於烏克蘭南部，大多數居民講俄語。

一名俄羅斯議員說，如果3月16日的克里米亞全民公決支持加入俄羅斯，克里姆林宮將撥款11億美元，用於重建克里米亞的工業基礎設施。

德國總理默克爾星期天與俄羅斯總統普京通電話時說，莫斯科支持的克里米亞全民公決不合法，違反烏克蘭憲法。