The Telegraph's Roland Oliphant reports from parliament building in Simferopol where Cossacks stand guard outside as politicians decide to hold a referendum on whether Crimea should become part of Russia
Crimea's parliament voted to join Russia on Thursday and its Moscow-backed government set a referendum within 10 days on the decision in a dramatic escalation of the crisis over the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula.
Sergei Shuvainikov, a member of the Crimean legislature, said on Thursday that the decision was a response to the "disorder and lawlessness" in Kiev.
Meanwhile, a crowd of pro-Russian demonstrators rallied outside the Crimean parliament building in the capital Simferopol.
The parliament in Crimea, which enjoys a degree of autonomy under current Ukrainian law, voted 78 with eight abstentions in favour of holding the referendum.
Local voters will also be given the choice of deciding to remain part of Ukraine, but with enhanced local powers.
The sudden acceleration of moves to bring Crimea, which has an ethnic Russian majority and has effectively been seized by Russian forces, formally under Moscow's rule came as EU leaders held an emergency summit groping for ways to pressure Russia to back down and accept mediation.
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