(VOVworld) - Russia's upper legislative house will vote on Friday to complete the ratification of a treaty to merge Crimea into Russia. Russia’s lower house, the State Duma, overwhelmingly voted to ratify the treaty on Thursday after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing Crimea as an independent state.

Russia's State Duma session on ratifying a treaty on Crimea Photo: internet

Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk announced in Brussels on Thursday that Ukraine is in no hurry to introduce a new visa policy with Russia. He said this would adversely affect Ukrainian citizens, most of whom prefer the current visa exemption between the two countries, especially those who live in the east and south of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama announced Thursday a list of additional sanctions imposed on Russian individuals and organizations. The list includes 20 Russian individuals and one bank. The White House warned that this list is just the beginning. President Obama has signed an order to allow the imposition of sanctions on major Russian economic sectors including finance, energy, metallurgy, mining, and machinery.