A woman cast her ballot during the referendum

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 A woman cast her ballot during the referendum at a polling station in Simferopol. The referendum, which has been dismissed as illegal by the West, follows
the ousting of President Viktor Yanukovych by pro-Western and nationalist protesters. Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters
 Sergei Aksyonov, a pro-Russia politician who took over as regional prime minister as unidentified armed men seized control of Crimea's parliament in late
February, said Sunday night the gears were already in motion for Crimea's quick annexation to Russia. Officials in Moscow haven't spelled out a time frame
yet, however.
Mr. Aksyonov said that the Russian ruble would become an official currency in Crimea within days, and that a delegation of regional lawmakers would travel to
Moscow on Monday to start sorting out the details of joining Russia, according to Russian news agency Interfax.
Many Crimeans who disagreed with the referendum appeared to have stayed home. They included thousands of Crimean Tatars, an ethnic minority that accounts for
about 12% of the peninsula's population and remains skeptical of Kremlin rule after facing deportation to Central Asia under Joseph Stalin. The community's
leader has called the referendum unlawful.

 Ukraine's defense minister said a truce with Russia means Ukrainian troops will remain in Crimea through March 21. He added that Russian provocations appear
aimed at repeating the Crimean scenario in other Ukraine territories. Photo: Getty Images.
Many ethnic Russians and Ukrainians who don't want Crimea to leave Ukraine have stayed silent. They cite pressure from friends and relatives as well as the
tense atmosphere on the streets, where militias have been patrolling with Russian flags.

"I didn't go. I boycotted," said Denis Matsola, a 26-year-old left-wing activist from Simferopol, who says he considers himself Russian but would rather
Crimea remain part of Ukraine.
Though Ukraine's economy is worse, it is still freer than Russia, said Mr. Matsola, who worries that as an activist, he will end up getting beaten up or
jailed once Crimea is part of Russia. "I understand that it will be hard for me to live in a Russian reality," he says, noting that many of his activist
friends have left for mainland Ukraine.

Mr. Matsola said among those he knows who also want Crimea to stay within Ukraine, he knows only one person who actually went to vote. Most have remained
quiet. "People are afraid to talk," he said. "Even just within families there's this national pressure on people."

—Philip Shishkin, Julian E. Barnes, Adam Entous, Carol E. Lee and Bertrand Benoit contributed to this article.

Hijack theory terrifies families of missing passengers
New revelations about a missing Malaysia Airlines plane have left anguished relatives contemplating the prospect that those on board endured a terrifying
high-altitude hijack ordeal that may have lasted nearly eight hours.
But while the disclosures led to increased speculation of a terror plot or pilot suicide, for some they offered a glimmer of hope – that flight MH370,
carrying 239 passengers and crew, may somehow have landed safely and that their loved ones may still be alive.

For relatives of Bob and Cathy Lawton, a missing Australian couple, the possibility of a terrifying drawn-out fate at thousands of feet reflected their
deepest fears.
“That’s one of the worst things I could have hoped for,” Bob’s brother David Lawton told News Limited newspapers.
“Even if they are alive, what did they have to put up with?”
Prime Minister Najib Razak declined to use the word hijack when he briefed the press Saturday, but said new data suggested a “deliberate action” to divert
the plane.
The Boeing 777’s communications appear to have been switched off manually before the jet veered westward and flew for hours. What happened during that time
remains a mystery. But one report of the plane fluctuating from low to high altitude fuelled fears the passengers may have been well aware they were in
terrible danger.
The New York Times said the jet had reached 45,000 feet – above its approved altitude limit – before it “descended unevenly to 23,000 feet.” It cited
Malaysian military radar signals, but the data have not been confirmed by the authorities.
“At 45,000 feet, it may result in pressurization problems,” said Gerry Soejatman, a Jakarta-based independent aviation analyst.
“But we don’t know how the fluctuation went, whether it was gentle or violent and sharp. If it was gentle, only a few sensitive passengers would notice.”
For relatives in China, which had 153 citizens on the flight, the investigators’ breakthrough just brought more distress and frustration.
“We are experiencing an ordeal. We are still waiting for (more information),” said one tearful man emerging from a meeting between Malaysia Airlines and
relatives in Beijing on Sunday morning.
“We are extremely anxious. A long time has passed and they don’t disclose (more) information,” he said.
Another branded the meeting “a joke.”