Russian Special Forces Attack Vital Ukrainian Air Base, Soldiers Beating Journalists

Russian special forces attacked an important Ukrainian air force base in the Crimea region, smashing through concrete walls with four armored personnel carriers.

Two officers were was injured by gunshot wounds in the assault at Belbek Airbase, a Ukraine Defense ministry official confirmed, while the base commander is in the custody of Russian special forces.

Outrageously, even journalists, including foreign journalists, were beaten by the Russian forces.

An Armored Personnel Carrier smashed through the front gate of the Belbek base, which is located near the port city of Sevastopol. The aggression was captured by footage released by the Ukrainian Defense ministry.

The Ukrainian commander of the base, Yuliy Mamchur, reported there was at least one injury. While preparing for the Russian special forces assault, Mamchur assembled his men and they sang the Ukrainian national anthem, as they stood at ease. He reportedly said they were going to turn over their weapons, but also told CNN that they could expect his forces to be resisting Russian control of the base. Reuters also reported a similar statement.

Russian troops had surrounded the Ukrainian airbase and issued an ultimatum to forces inside to surrender, and now Mamchur is negotiating with the Russians.

Following the Crimea referendum, Russian forces have been seizing Ukrainian military facilities for several days in the Black Sea peninsula, which was formally legitimized according to Russia with the final proposal signed by Putin in Moscow. Belbek is just one of the few military bases controlled by Ukraine in the region, but it is a vital installation.

Not that Crimea is effectively under the control of Russia, which ring Ukrainian military bases on the strategic Black Sea peninsula, concern is rising that Ukraine’s eastern regions will also come under Russia assault.

Russia has brought large military forces to areas near the border with eastern Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said there is no intention to move into eastern Ukraine, but the prospect appears high despite economic ramifications.

Eastern Ukraine is the heart and soul of Ukraine’s economic treasures, including vital heavy industry and mining, as well as the support base for Viktor Yanukovych, the Ukrainian president who fled to Russia last month after being ousted in the wake of three months of protests in the capital, Kiev.

The local parliament on Friday formed a working group to develop a referendum analogous to the one in Crimea. Activists on Saturday passed out mock ballots, although no referendum has been formally called.

A number of leading pro-Russian activists have already been detained by police on suspicion of fomenting secessionist activities. The country’s security services said Saturday that they have arrested Mikhail Chumachenko, leader of the self-styled Donbass People’s Militia, on suspicion of seeking to seize authority.

With developments in the region growing more tense, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is deploying an observer team aimed at easing the crisis, but it is unclear whether the team will even be allowed into Crimea.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in a statement on Friday that Moscow hopes that the 200-strong team “will help to overcome the internal Ukrainian crisis” and ensure the respect for human rights there.

Russian forces last week stopped OSCE military observers from entering Crimea. The organization on Friday did not specify whether the observers will go to Crimea.

Lukashevich said on Saturday that the OSCE’s mission “will reflect the new political and legal order and will not cover Crimea and Sevastopol which became part of Russia.”

Daniel Baer, the United States’ chief envoy to OSCE, said the observers should have access to the territory because Crimea remains Ukrainian to the rest of the world.