The
2014 Ukrainian revolution began with
civil unrest in
Kyiv,
Ukraine, as part of Ukraine's ongoing
Euromaidan protest movement against the government. The conflict escalated rapidly, leading to the downfall of the government of President
Viktor Yanukovych and the setting up of a new government to replace it within a few days. and is wanted in Ukraine for the killing of protesters. The conflict continued with the
2014 Crimean crisis when Russian forces
seized control of the Crimea region. The 2014 Crimean crisis began in late February 2014 in the aftermath of the
Ukrainian Revolution, when—after months of protests by
Euromaidan and days of violent clashes between protesters and police in the Ukrainian capital
Kyiv —the
president of Ukraine,
Viktor Yanukovych, fled the capital on February 21. The
Verkhovna Rada (the
parliament of Ukraine) subsequently voted unanimously to
impeach Yanukovych. This was followed by the
interim appointment of the
Yatsenyuk Government, as well as the appointment of a new Acting President of Ukraine,
Oleksandr Turchynov. However,
Russian president Vladimir Putin has said President Yanukovych was illegally impeached and that Russia continues to regard him as Ukraine's legitimate president. Russia describes the Yatsenyk government as "self-proclaimed" and the events in Kyiv as a "
coup d'etat". Beginning on February 26, pro-Russian forces gradually
took control of the Crimean peninsula. Russia claimed that the uniformed men were
local self-defense forces, but they are generally claimed in Western media to be Russian military personnel without insignia. On 28 February, President
Barack Obama's statement was released warning Russia not to intervene in Crimea. The statement said that President Obama is "deeply concerned by reports of military movements taken by the Russian Federation inside of Ukraine." It added that "any violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity would be deeply destabilizing, which is not in the interest of Ukraine, Russia, or Europe" and that it would be "a clear violation of Russia's commitment to respect the independence and sovereignty and borders of Ukraine, and of international laws." On 1 March, Obama held a phone conversation with Putin and said that the Russian invasion was a "violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity ... [and a] breach of international law." He warned of "greater political and economic isolation" and threatened to withdraw the United States from the
40th G8 summit chaired by Russia. Secretary of State
John Kerry then labeled and condemned Russia's "invasion" of Ukraine on March 2 in an interview for
Face the Nation. He called it an "incredible act of aggression," and said that "you just don't in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pretext." On 3 March,
National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden announced that the United States would not send a presidential delegation to the
2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi (which was to be led by
Tammy Duckworth), "in addition to other measures we are taking in response to the situation in Ukraine." As with the British boycott effort, it will not affect the country's participation in the Games themselves. On 6 March, Obama signed
Executive Order 13660,
Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Ukraine, authorizing sanctions against persons who, being determined by the Secretary of the Treasury in consultation with the Secretary of State, have violated or assisted in the violation of Ukraine's sovereignty. On March 11, the Supreme Council of Crimea and the
City Council of Sevastopol adopted a joint resolution expressing their intention to
unilaterally declare Crimea's independence from Ukraine as a
single united nation with the possibility of joining the
Russian Federation as a federal subject. In a
referendum on March 16, officials said that nearly 96% of those who voted in Crimea supported joining Russia. Election officials said the turnout was a record high, although many Tatars and opponents of the referendum were reported to have boycotted the vote. On March 17, the
Crimean parliament officially declared its independence from
Ukraine and requested to join the
Russian Federation. On March 18, President Putin reclaimed Crimea as a part of Russia on both moral and material grounds, citing the principle of self-determination and Crimea's strategic importance for Russia. The Ukrainian parliament has stated that the referendum is unconstitutional. The
United States and the
European Union said they consider the vote to be illegal, and warned that there may be repercussions for the Crimean ballot. On 17 March, Obama signed Executive Order 13661,
Blocking Property of Additional Persons Contributing to the Situation in Ukraine, which expanded the scope of the previous sanctions imposed by EO 13660, to include the freezing of certain Russian government officials' assets in the US and blocking their entry into the US. ==Provisions of the bill==