Russia's actions are dangerous and destabilizing. The U.N. Security Council recognized this in a vote yesterday that only Russia opposed. As the United States and our allies have made clear, military intervention and violation of international law will bring increasing costs for Russia - not only due to measures imposed by the United States and our allies but also as a direct result of Russia's own destabilizing actions.

18.36 Here is a bit more from Roland Oliphant on the result this evening after polls close in Crimea:

"Crimea voted overwhelmingly for unification with Russia on Thursday according to exit polls, in a vote that critics have condemned as illegitimate, illegal, and neither free nor fair.

Exit polls announced on Russian Television claimed 93 percent of voters who turned out for Sunday’s referendum voted for unification with Russia.

The poll suggested seven percent of voters opted for a second option of sweeping autonomy within Ukraine, carried out by a Simferopol based organisation called the Republican Institute for Political and Social Research.

The high vote chimes with straw-polls conducted by journalists at polling stations, and likely reflects a boycott by anti-secessionist voters. Refat Chubarov, the head of the Mejlis, a representative body of the Crimean Tatars, called on people of all nationalities to stay away from what he has called an illegal and illegitimate vote.

Of dozens of voters of three Crimean towns visited by Telegraph journalists on Sunday, not one admitted to voting against the poll.

Western governments have universally condemned the referendum, saying it violates Ukrainian and international law, and is neither free nor fair.

Ukrainian law requires a nation-wide referendum on any change to the country’s borders.

Queues were already building at polling stations before polls opened at 8 AM on Sunday morning.

Sergei Aksyonov, the pro-Russian prime minister who became a member of the Russians, voted early on Sunday morning.

Preparations for unification celebrations were already underway in central Simferopol hours before polls closed at 8 PM on Sunday night.

18.24 According to the Crimean leader, the Crimean referendum "will go down in history".

18.22 A Russian news agency, Interfax, says voter turnout has exceeded 80 percent.

18.20 Here is a bit more: "As the United States and our allies have made clear, military intervention and violation of international law will bring increasing costs for Russia - not only due to measures imposed by the United States and our allies but also as a direct result of Russia's own destabilizing actions," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement.

18.14 The White House says that it rejects the referendum in Crime and has called Russia's actions "dangerous" and "destabilising" according to Reuters.

It added that Eussia will face "increasing costs" for military intervention and the violation of international law. It says that the vote held under "threats of violence and intimidation" by Russian military:

"We are long past the days when the world would stand quietly by while one country forcibly seizes the territory of another."

18.07 Russia's RIA news agency says exit polls show that 93 percent of voters in Crimea support the union with russia.

18.05 More than 2,000 people have marched to the Russian embassy in London on Sunday to denounce the "referendum at gunpoint" staged in the Ukrainian region of Crimea.

The demonstrators carried banners, placards and Ukrainian flags and chanted their opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin's actions.

"Stop Putin's imperialism", "Referendum at gunpoint", "Ukraine: united, peaceful, European" and "Russian army out of Ukraine" read banners carried by protesters.

They chanted "Ukraine united will never be divided", "Putin: hands off Ukraine" and "Russian troops leave Crimea".

Among the placards were ones depicting Putin as a rat and as Adolf Hitler, while others read: "RIP USSR" and "Make borscht not war" and called for Western sanctions against Russia.

16.54 The EU's statement on Ukraine:

"The referendum is illegal and illegitimate and its outcome will not be recognised.

"We reiterate the strong condemnation of the unprovoked violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and call on Russia to withdraw its armed forces to their pre-crisis numbers,"

16.25 Riot police stand in front of pro-Russian activists as they storm the prosecutor's office in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk:

16.20 A little bit more about the EU's decision on Ukraine. In a joint statement by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, they called on Russia to withdraw its armed forces to their pre-crisis numbers and to usual areas of deployment. The EU will meet in Brussels on Monday.

16.19 Kerry reiterated the US's position that the crisis must be resolved politically and that as Ukrainians take the necessary political measures going forward, Russia must reciprocate by pulling forces back to base, and addressing the tensions and concerns about military engagement.

16.14 Kerry also reaffirmed that the United States considers the referendum illegal and will not recognise the outcome. He called Lavrov's attention to actions taken by the government of Ukraine to arrest those responsible for violence in Kharkiv and steps taken to implement the demobilisation and disarmament of irregular forces.

16.11 A senior US state department official said that John Kerry raised strong concerns about the Russian military activities in Kherson oblast yesterday with Russian foreign minister Sergy Lavrov, and about the continuing provocations in eastern cities in Ukraine

16.03 This just in from Reuters, the EU has said that the Crimea referendum is illegal and illegitimate and the outcome will not be recognised according to President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso. The EU will decide on sanctions on Monday.

15.55 A bit more on America's movements in the crisis. The White House has warned President Putin that Moscow will face sanctions in coming days and international isolation that will hurt Russia's economy.

"We are putting as much pressure on the Russians as we can to do the right thing," White House senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer has said.

"You can expect sanctions designations in the coming days," Pfeiffer told NBC's Meet the Press

Meanwhile Republican Senator John McCain, just back from a visit to Ukraine, urged the Obama administration to do more. "The United States of America has to first of all have a fundamental reassessment of our relationship with Vladimir Putin. No more 'reset' button,

15.38 The scene in Lenin Square, Simferopol

15.35 A little add from Roland Oliphant:

"The boycott announced by Tatar leader Refat Chubarov appears to have held across the peninsular.

One Russian Communist Party MP, in Crimea as an observer, told the Telegraph that he had spoken to a Tatar voter at polling station in strongly Tatar town of Bakhchassari - but all the voters the Telegraph spoke to at the same polling station and others in the town described themselves as ethnic Russians or Russian-speaking Ukrainians. "

15.31 Crimeans at a polling station in Bakhchisarai, Simferopol

15.30 Activists in Donetsk raised the Russian flag in the prosecutor-general's office. Reuters reports that about 500 of them later broke windows at the local headquarters of the state security service but were held back from entering the building.

15.24 An update from our correspondent Roland Oliphant who has spent the day in Crimea monitoring voting:

"After an early morning rush, voting appears to have peaked at polling stations across the peninsular by midday. By mid afternoon polling stations on Lyubovnets, Bakhchissarai and Simferopol were almost deserted, with election officials waiting in near silence for late voters to trickle in one by one.

While I have seen no sign of coercion or ballot stuffing, its clear this is going to be a landslide "yes" vote after a near total boycott by those who reject unification with Russia.

Of dozens of voters I have spoken to today, not a single one said they had voted for option two - autonomy within Ukraine - and not a single one of the ballots visible in the transparent ballot boxes at seven polling stations in three towns I visited had been ticked with option two.

With four hours to go before polls close, one exit pollster outside a Simferopol polling station said he only about 'five percent" of the 800 odd people his team had spoken to that day had refused to answer his questions. Everyone else said they had voted in favour of unification with Russia. "No one voted against. I think those who disagree just stayed away," he said.

"We want to go home," said Olga Lushak, 28, who works in an off license in the town. "My parents moved here from Pskov region and Vorkutka in Russia in Soviet times. No one asked us if we want to be part of Ukraine - now its time to make this land home again."

15.21 Reuters reports that Ukraine's new rulers have announced a call-up to raise 20,000 men for a newly-created National Guard, accusing Russia of sending "touring" trouble-makers across the border to stir up separatism in the country.

Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said half the strength of the National Guard was being sought within a fortnight. "About 10,000 will be called up in the next 15 days," he said.

15.13 Meanwhile, a Russian soldier holding a cat in Crimea.

15.08 Protesters, demanding the release of their self-appointed "governor," attacked the two buildings in Donetsk without meeting much opposition from police.

14.25 Crimeans voting at a polling station in Bakhchisarai, Simferopol:

14.22 German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Putin that more Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observers should be sent to Ukraine, a plan he welcomed, Merkel's spokesman said.

"The chancellor proposed swiftly expanding the existing OSCE presence in Ukraine and sending a bigger number of observers into hot spots, especially in East Ukraine," Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said.

Merkel also condemned a Russian attempt on Saturday to try to enter a spit of land belonging to Kherson, a region adjacent to Crimea,

14.04 Strong words from Ukraine's new prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk who has insisted again that neither Ukraine nor the West will recognize the referendum, which they say is being conducted at gunpoint.

"Now, on the territory of the autonomous republic of Crimea under the stage direction of the Russian Federation, a circus performance is underway: the so-called referendum, he told a government meeting. "Also taking part in the performance are 21,000 Russian troops, who with their guns are trying to prove the legality of the referendum."

13.27 Putin has also said that he will respect the choice of the people in Crimea in the referendum and that he is concerned over the escalation of tensions he says are caused by radical groups in the south and southeast regions of the Ukraine.

13.21 Acording to a Kremlin statement Vladimir Putin has told German chancellor Angela Merkel by phone that the referendum in Crimea complies with international law.

13.10 AFP say that voters were seen casting their ballots even before the official start of Crimea's referendum on Sunday at a polling station in Sevastopol in one of several possible irregularities.

Journalists were also turned away at some polling stations in Sevastopol and Simferopol despite having official media accreditation from Crimea's authorities.

There was blatant campaigning for Russia, which is not allowed under election rules, in the form of rehearsals for parties later on Sunday to celebrate an expected pro-Moscow result.

Mykhaylo Malyshev, the head of the referendum organising committee, denied reports that Russian citizens were being allowed to cast ballots, saying that only residents of Crimea or those with Ukrainian passports were allowed to take part.

13.08 There are increasing fears in Latvia that after Crimea, they may be next to receive Russian 'protection'.

12.55 Crimeans at a polling station to vote: 

12.50 Here is a profile of Sergei Akssyonov, the pro-Russian Crimean prime minister presiding over today's vote.

12.45 Just in from Reuters, the acting Ukrainian defence minister says that the defence ministries of Ukraine and Russia have agreed on a truce in Crimea until March 21. He said that Russian forces have agreed that they will take no action against Ukrainian military facilities in Crimea during that period.

12.40 Pro- Moscow activists in Donetsk are looking for the release of Pavel Gubarev who declares himself "people's governor". He was arrested on March 6 and charged with "infringing the territorial integrity and independence of the state”. 

12.35 Last night about 30 men in balaclavas with automatic weapons barged into the Hotel Moscow, a Soviet-era hotel where many Western reporters covering Sunday's referendum are staying.

They said they had come to investigate an unspecified security alert and did not threaten anyone, but Reuters say some witnesses saw it as a move to intimidate journalists.

12.30 An armoured vehicle, believed to be Russian, guards the entrance of a Ukrainian military base in Perevalnoye, near the Crimean city of Simferopol

12.25 AP has some information on ethnic Ukrainians, who were interviewed outside the Ukrainian Orthodox cathedral of Vladimir and Olga . They said they refused to take part in the referendum, calling it an illegal charade that they said was stage managed by Moscow.

Some said they were scared of the potential for ethnic cleansing in the coming weeks, like what happened in parts of the former Soviet republic of Georgia.

"We're just not going to play these separatist games," said Yevgen Sukhodolsky, a 41-year-old prosecutor from Saki, a town outside of Simferopol. "Putin is the fascist. The Russian government is fascist."

Vasyl Ovcharuk, a retired gas pipe layer who also worked on the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986, predicted dark days ahead for Crimea.

"This will end up in military action, in which peaceful people will suffer. And that means everybody. Shells and bullets are blind," he said.

12.10 This video on You Tube comes from the Euro Maidan account and they say it shows the Russian army preparing military equipment for the invasion of the Ukraine:

12.07 Our correspondent Roland Oliphant is in the Crimean capital Simferol for the referendum:

A steady stream of voters, mostly elderly, passed through polling station number 08013 in Simferopol’s high school No. 9 after polling opened at 8 AM.

A straw poll of half a dozen voters at the station showed blanket support for unification with Russia.

"I voted so Crimea would be happy,” said Vladimir Nazarevich, after casting the first ballot of the morning.

"We’re returning to our own land. It’s been Russian for 200 years. To day we return,” said Leonid, a 74 year old retired physiotherapist, who was queuing to vote at the same polling station before voting opened at 8 AM.

The tri-lingual ballot paper asks two questions in Russian, Ukrainian, and Crimean Tatar.

The first option is "Do you support Criema’s unification with Russia as a subject of the Russian Federation.”

The second option asks "do you support the reinstatement of the 1992 contrition of Crimea and Crimea’s status as a part of Ukraine.

None of the handful of carelessly folded ballots that were visible in the transparent ballot boxes after an hour of voting showed a "no” vote.

12.05 From our chief foreign correspondent David Blair, a handy Ukraine crisis explainer:

12.00 Queues are forming across Crimea as voters flock to the polls. Here an elderly woman casts her vote at a polling station in Sevastopol:

11.55 The head of EON, Germany's leading power supplier, warned Berlin against "recklessly" damaging ties with Russia over the crisis in Ukraine.

Johannes Teyssen told Der Spiegel that the tensions risked hobbling a fruitful "partnership".

"I don't want to interfere in foreign policy questions but I think that we have exercised very responsible policy toward the east in the last few decades,"

"The build-up of trust and the interlocking of our economies have led to the fact that more than 6,000 German companies are active in Russia."

He said that at the same time, Russian companies had invested heavily in Germany, particularly in the gas sector.

"Through this partnership, our continent has grown more peaceful. That should not be recklessly jeopardised."

11.44 Dr James Summers, director of the Centre for International Law and Human Rights at Lancaster University, said that the referendum could backfire on Russia.

"The referendum in itself violates international law, as it stems from an illegal act, the invasion of the Crimea, which it seeks to legitimise.

"Russia may be using the referendum as a bargaining chip in negotiations, though this may backfire as the vote is so clearly tainted.

"Other neighbouring states will be looking anxiously at what is happening in Crimea"

"They will see that it could also happen to them, and that could work against Russia by turning more former Soviet states away from it and towards the West in the search for allies and support.

11.32 Some more information from Ukraine's acting defence minister Ihor Tenyukh from that Interfax interview. "We are seeing an increase in the number of Russian servicemen in Crimea," he said. "And the Ukrainian armed forces are therefore taking appropriate measures along the southern borders."

He added that every senior Ukrainian officer in Crimea "clearly knows what is to be done depending on the situation".

"Decisions will be taken depending on how events unfold. But let me say once again that this is our land and we will not be leaving it."

11.05 The head of Crimea's unrecognised Russian-backed government Sergei Aksyonov 

REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

11.00 Ukraine's former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko has urged the West to unite against Russia.

"This aggressive striving for power with regard to Ukraine represents not only a danger for the Ukrainian state - other parts of eastern Europe are also in danger," she told German daily Der Tagesspiegel.

"Should Putin continue his attack on our country after the annexation of Crimea, I would call on the leaders of the democratic world to use the strongest measures to stop this aggressor."

10.50 Polling stations opened this morning at 8 am local time and will close 12 hours later, at 6 pm GMT

10.40 At the United Nations Russia vetoed a Security Council resolution declaring the referendum illegal, and China, its ally, abstained.

10.37 AP have quotes from voters in Sevastopol, the Crimean capital, where voters apparently lined up outside polling stations before they opened. More than 70 people surged into a polling station within the first 15 minutes of voting.

"Today is an important day for all Crimea, Ukraine and Russia," said voter Manita Meshchina. "I think that people are expecting the majority of people will vote 'yes.' What it means is that people believe and think they need to be with Russia."

"Today is a holiday," said one of them, 66-year-old Vera Sverkunova. Asked how she voted, she broke into a patriotic war song: "I want to go home to Russia. It's been so long since I've seen my mama."

10.34 Good morning. The Crimea region is voting today about whether to demand greater autonomy from Ukraine or split off and seek to join Russia, in a referendum that has been condemned as illegal by the United States and European countries.

Yesterday Ukrainian officials said Russian forces backed by helicopter gunships and armored vehicles had advanced about 6 miles over the Crimean border into another Ukrainian region.

11.01 A woman holds a Russian flag as she casts her ballot during the referendum