MOSCOW. March 20 (Interfax) - Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has called on the Crimean authorities to release Ukrainian Navy Commander Serhiy Hayduk from detention, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a press release.
"The Defense Minister of the Russian Federation, General Sergei Shoigu, has asked the leadership of the Republic of Crimea to free Ukrainian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Serhiy Hayduk, who was detained today, and not to prevent his departure to the territory of Ukraine," the ministry said.
The Russian defense minister said that Hayduk was duty-bound to obey orders issued by his senior commanders and follow the military regulations of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, it said.