Putin, Erdogan confident that peace to be ensured in Crimea

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, who had a telephone conversation on Tuesday, expressed confidence that "despite the actions of Ukrainian radical and extremist forces, interethnic and inter-religious peace and accord will be ensure in Crimea," ITAR-TASS reported according to the Kremlin press service.

Mass protests in Ukraine began on November 21, 2013, when the government announced the suspension of the preparation of an Association Agreement with the EU. As a result of protests in Ukraine, the country's President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted on Feb.22. The Verkhovna Rada (parliament) has approved the new composition of the parliament and is preparing to hold pre-term elections.