Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a diploma recognizing the Republic of Crimea as a sovereign and independent State, a day after the Crimean voted to secede from Ukraine.

Turkey could close the Bosphorus for Russian ships, if there is violence against Crimean Tatars, said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan.

EU is “forced” to use the enlargement policy towards Ukraine, Commissioner Stefan Füle said on Tuesday. Füle said that the block should use ” its strongest instrument ” if it wants to deal with ” this part of Eastern Europe that have affected recent events . “