. cities like harkiv, legan and donetsk where we have seen tense scenes the last week on watching events very closely. let's get a view from world correspondent james reynolds. >> this is the main government headquarters here in donetsk. and this building has been the center of protests and counterprotests in recent days. pro-russian demonstrators came here and swept their way in. they even raised the russian flag. they have now been kicked out. the building has been retaken by ukraine's authorities. as you can tell by this line of riot police standing guard in the building. the line is reasonably thinly spaced at the moment. but at some point it's two offices deep. there aren't any pro-russian demonstratorings here at the moment. just as a precaution, have a look there and you will see two trucks guarding the entrance. the deputy mayor has told the bbc he thinks a referendum may give a pro-russian population a chance to decide its own status. there is still a lot of skepticism by the aims and ambitions of the authorities in kiev. for now these officers have their orders. they won

majority, donetsk. we have seen protests from pro russian groups. various moves to cut themselves away from kiev. so certainly an area of deep divisions and a lot of concerns for the tphaoeurts in kiev and those worried about their country being ripped apart >>> stay with us here on "bbc world news". three years to come after the puke shaoe that disaster in japan, they are still living as evacuees. trying to stay fit but miss real pleasure? discover light & fit greek nonfat yogurt. irresistible flavors, like strawberry cheesecake, with a delightfully thick creamy texture. light & fit greek. taste satisfaction without sacrifice. ♪ dannon hi boys! i've made you campbell's chunky new england clam chowder. wow! this is incredible! i know. and now it has more clams! [ male announcer ] campbell's chunky soup. what? [ male announcer ] it fills you up right. when it comes to grass seed. "what if i forget to water it, scott? will it still grow?" roll the clip, jimmy. scotts wraps each seed in a brilliant coating that feeds, protects, and holds in moisture. so growing thicker, healthier grass is ea

like donetsk. >> reporter: he thinks a referendum may be a chance to calm tensions here to give pro russian population. >>> ukraine will head to the olympics. >>> katanga found guilty of murder and pillage. >>> and the court in pretoria hears testimony about another alleged shooting incident. that on the fifth day of his murder trial. >>> hello, everyone. we start on the ukraine crisis. ukraine's athletes just decided they will take part in the sochi paraolympics. there they are, deciding to boycott the games. well, the u.s. and france have said they won't be sending any politicians at all to the paraolympics. and in moscow, members of the upper house of parliament, there they are, have demonstrated their unwaivering support for president putin. they underline their support for crimea to join russia. he said he is now ready for talking to russia. but moscow must pull their troops back in crimea. let's get the latest from nick childs. >> and unscheduled event ahead of the paraolympics in sochi. it is expressing its unhappiness with events back home. will this and a boycott and maybe

parts of ukraine itself? >> it's difficult to say. yesterday the demonstrations in donetsk were not numerous but vocal and quite nasty. in other cities of ukraine in the east, there wasn't really too much presence. so maybe the support of joining russia is not as strong as we are portraying sometimes. on the other hand, there is a little bit more movement on the part of the ukrainian government. for instance, they are sending more to donetsk, the flashpoint. so we will see how that will develop. there is an initiative, some kind of political offer to talk rather than to brandish weapons. >> we are seeing threats from the eu and the u.s. realistically, will we get any strong sanctions like germany? >> well, this is debatable. the policy of the european union seems to be more coherent. germany and its eastern neighbors in the baltic states. >> will russia be worried about that. >> it is difficult to say. depending on the quality of sanctions and whether they top the top echelon of ministers. >> could be even more tough sanctions. tomorrow president putin will be addressing the parliam

to reenforce their border, a unit of officer cadets was sent to the donetsk region. one of them was born in the area. with many people in the region supporting russia, maxim told the bbc they were far from welcome. >> translator: we came to reenforce the border. we're learning how to do it. our goal is not to fight with russia. we came here to train. that's it. people here are generally okay, but i can't understand why they want to kick us out. yesterday we spoke to them. they told us they don't want a war here. we didn't come here to fight. the locals are afraid for their lives. most of their fears are based on rumors. people write a lot about us on the internet now. we read it and just laugh. i feel really ashamed of the people from my region. i thought they would treat us well here. i'm disappointed. i am ukrainian and i serve the people of ukraine. the things which are going on in politics right now have nothing to do with me. >> stay with us here on "bbc world news." i'm nik gowing. still to come, amazing images from houston in texas, how this construction worker on the right h

military standoffs continue across the whole peninsula. in the eastern city of donetsk, a flag has been hoisted over a government building which has been contested for four days. reports here at kerch say 12 ukrainian coast guard trips broke free. this is in the east of mainland ukraine, what appear to be russian armed forces still patrolling outside a military base. there it is. the russian flag flying there. let's now go to crimea to ben brown who joins me from sevastopol. this news from the parliament, ben, what are the implications? >> reporter: well, i think it ratchets up the tension, doesn't it, nik? they essentially brought forward this referendum made in the end of march. it was originally going to be a question about autonomy. now it is straight question really when you boil it down. do you want crimea to be part of russia or part of ukraine? now, there's been a vote in the crimean parliament. the legislature is saying they want to be part of russia. that needs to be endorsed by this referendum which will be on march 16th. so 10 days time. my understanding is this was vot

are taking place in donetsk, eastern cue crain and moscow. the ousted president viktor yanukovych is expected to speak tomorrow. >> i think definitely. this invitation by president obama to the interim prime minister here are very clear show of support for the interim government and proof of the fact that united states and much of the international community do see the government here in kiev as a legitimate one, at least until elections later on in may. so therefore saying we're supporting ukraine repeated i suppose that idea that moscow is committing an act of aggression in crimea. and the position of the international community led by the united states that russian troops need to withdraw back to their bases. we haven't seen any sign of that. no real sign that pressure is having an impact. we have seen president putin say in a phone call with the british prime minister and with the german leader talking about the fact that an international contact group is a possibility. talking about the fact at least he will discuss that possibility with his foreign minister. so a suggestion