KYIV. March 11 (Interfax) - Measures taken by the local authorities in Crimea in response to the decision of the autonomous republic's parliament to hold a referendum on Crimea's status on March 16 are illegitimate and are punishable by law, Ukrainian acting Prosecutor General Oleh Makhnytsky said.
"The Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine will react in the same way to similar violations of the law in other regions of the state as well," Makhnytsky said in a statement, which was published on the Prosecutor General's Office website on Monday evening.
On March 6, the Crimean Parliament voted in favor of holding a referendum on March 16 on whether Crimea should become part of Russia or remain an autonomous republic within Ukraine. The legislature of Sevastopol supported the decision to hold such a referendum.