The world 's eyes may have been focused on the breathtakingly fast political changes unfolding in Ukraine 's capital Kiev this week , but it is the Crimean peninsula , where dozens of gunmen raised the Russian flag over parliament Thursday , that should now be the primary source of concern for Ukraine 's fledgling government and world leaders . Crimea is an autonomous republic whose history has long been marred by political tension . Gifted to Ukraine by Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev in 1954 , its population is ethnic Russian by just over half and Ukrainian by a quarter , while more than ten percent are Crimean Tatars who are fiercely anti-Russian as a result of Joseph Stalin 's repression of the group a half century ago . Russia 's strategically important Black Sea naval fleet is hosted at Sevastopol , the region 's largest city , an arrangement that controversially extended until 2042 by the ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych , who was last seen fleeing Kiev . His whereabouts are unknown . The large Russian population of Crimea has long viewed the central government of Ukraine with suspicion . In recent days the mood has turned into aggressive hostility towards the new authorities in Kiev . Crimean Russians see the newly-powerful opposition movement as illegitimate , sponsored by the West , and even fascist . Anti-Ukrainian protests are being held , Russian vigilante groups have sprung up across Crimea , Russian flags have been hoisted on government buildings , clashes have broken out between Russian separatists and loyalist Tatars and Ukrainians , and the Russian military has been seen patrolling key buildings and infrastructure . The Russian Federation has done precious little to contain this dangerous dynamic . On the contrary , its state-sponsored media have covered the unrest in Crimea extensively and reiterated the Kremlin 's view of the events in Kiev as a coup d'état . Envoys from Moscow have descended on Crimea to promise Russian citizenship to all who want it and even the region 's re-integration into Russia proper . Meanwhile , Russia 's foreign ministry is warning of violations of the human rights of ethnic Russians in Ukraine , while the Russian military is reportedly preparing lists for the evacuation of the families of seamen serving at Sevastopol . Snap military exercises have been ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin close to Ukraine 's borders . In short , the Kremlin is stoking the fires of the building separatism that can be observed in Crimea , despite its official commitment to non-interference and the territorial integrity of Ukraine . This situation bears all the hallmarks of several long-standing , often referred to as `` frozen '' , conflicts in Eastern Europe . In Transnistria , a breakaway region of Moldova , in Nagorno-Karabakh , which is contested by Armenia and Azerbaijan , or in Abkhazia and South-Ossetia , which have seceded from Georgia , Russia has long propped up separatists , providing political backing , military support , funding and passports . This undermines the stability of its smaller neighbors , challenges those nations ' sovereignty , blocks domestic reforms , and impedes European integration . By underwriting Crimean separatism , Russia is taking the first steps toward repeating such a scenario in Ukraine . So while many in Kiev and in Western capitals are pondering what Russia will do next , the the Kremlin has already made its decision . Russia 's choice of tactics is no coincidence . Rather , it is based on a sober analysis of the post-Euro-Maidan situation in Ukraine , particularly Kiev , and of Russia 's limited leverage there . The hoped-for public mayhem and political stalemate have not materialized . Western acceptance of the new government thwarts Russian claims of its illegitimacy . The country 's industrial east shows little inclination to move closer to Russia , and Western financial aid is shaping up to reduce Ukraine 's dependency on money from Moscow . In this constellation , Crimea is the `` weakest link '' in Ukraine today . This leaves the new Ukrainian government with a very difficult choice . It is obliged by the constitution to defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine , to re-establish public order in Crimea , and to guarantee the safety of its citizens there , irrespective of their ethnic background . However , the central government is only just regaining control over the situation , and faces enormous political , economic and social challenges . Its resources are already stretched without having to deal with a strong separatist movement and its even stronger external backer . What is more , Europe and the U.S. will be of very limited help in confronting Crimean separatists and their Russian masters . Ukraine 's choice , then , is between consolidating the gains of the Euro-Maidan revolution across most of the country , and risking it all to maintain control over a historically reticent part of Ukraine that may already be lost . The question that has to be answered now is whether Crimea is a price worth paying for getting Ukraine on track for democracy and European integration . MAP : How Ukraine is divided .
Armed men seize parliament building in Ukraine 's Crimea region . Crimea is last big bastion of opposition to new government in Kiev following President 's ouster . Tensions have simmered since President Yanukovych 's overthrow last week . Comment: Ukraine must decide if it 's worth risking recent progress over restive Crimea .