Timeline of the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation March 3 after the announcement of partial military mobilization in Ukraine and is believed to have been abducted. He was found dead with signs of torture; his hands were handcuffed and his head was covered in duct tape. The Treaty on Accession of the Republic of Crimea to Russia is signed, formally joining the self-declared independent Republic of Crimea to the Russian Federation as two federal subjects - the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol. One Ukrainian soldier and one pro-Russian soldier were killed in the Simferopol Incident. Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Temirgaliyev said in an
Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Empire Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Empire The territory of Crimea, previously controlled by the Crimean Khanate, was annexed by the Russian Empire on . The period before the annexation was marked by Russian interference in Crimean affairs, a series of revolts by Crimean Tatars, and Ottoman ambivalence. The annexation began 134 years of rule by the Russian Empire, which was ended by the revolution of 1917. After changing hands several times during the Russian Civil War, Crimea was part of the Russian Soviet Republic from 1921 to 1954, and then transferred to the Ukrainian SSR, which became independent Ukraine