SIMFEROPOL (Sputnik) — Ukraine has suspended food supply to Crimea and initiated a food blockade of the peninsula on the border, Deputy Prime Minister of Crimea Ruslan Balbek said Sunday.
Two leaders of an organization representing an ethnic minority group, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, who are also lawmakers at Ukraine's parliament, proposed earlier to block the country's border with Crimea on September 20, a move later supported by Ukrainian extremist organization Right Sector.
Ukrainian Interior Ministry claimed the situation at border checkpoints was under control, and road traffic was not blocked as of 1 p.m. local time [10:00 GMT].
The deputy minister said assumptions that Crimea could not do without Ukrainian food were groundless, as the peninsula has "almost fully switched to deliveries from mainland Russia."
According to Balbek, the leaders of the Mejlis have initiated the blockade in attempts to gain preferences on trade with Crimea.
Crimea rejoined Russia in March 2014, after more than 96 percent of voters backed the move in a referendum, which was not recognized as legitimate by Kiev and the West. Moscow maintains that the referendum was held in accordance with international law.
