--- description: The Crimea region of Ukraine voted Sunday to secede and join Russia. title: The Crimea Referendum in Pictures image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1c3a2f0ae894b099/698685bc810bbb2d20c9083c/ukraine-crimea-referendum-5.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Crimea Referendum in Pictures by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 17, 2014 1:06 PM CUT  A jubilant crowd in Crimea waits for the results of the referendum in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on March 16, 2014. A jubilant crowd in Crimea waits for the results of the referendum in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on March 16, 2014.Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 17, 2014 1:06 PM CUT  Residents of Crimea vote in a referendum on their region's secession from Ukraine and annexation into Russia on March 16, 2014. Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME  Parishioners gather for Sunday Mass at the main Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Crimea on March 16, 2014\. The leaders of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church urged their congregations to boycott the referendum. Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME  Sergei Yurchenko, the leader of a pro-Russian paramilitary force in Crimea, votes in his hometown Bakhchysarai on March 16, 2014 Yuri Kozyrev—;NOOR for TIME  Members of the Cossack paramilitary force in Crimea guard a checkpoint on the highway leading to the city of Sevastopol, home of Russia's Black Sea naval fleet, on March 16, 2014. Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME  A jubilant crowd in Crimea waits for the results of the referendum in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on March 16, 2014. Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/27027/the-crimea-referendum-in-pictures/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/27027/the-crimea-referendum-in-pictures/"},"headline":"The Crimea Referendum in Pictures","datePublished":"2014-03-17T13:06:22.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:08:33.285Z","description":"The Crimea region of Ukraine voted Sunday to secede and join Russia.","url":"https://time.com/27027/the-crimea-referendum-in-pictures/","keywords":["putin","Ukraine","russia","Crimea","referendum"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1c3a2f0ae894b099/698685bc810bbb2d20c9083c/ukraine-crimea-referendum-5.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1c3a2f0ae894b099/698685bc810bbb2d20c9083c/ukraine-crimea-referendum-5.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"ukraine-crimea-referendum-5","caption":"A jubilant crowd in Crimea waits for the results of the referendum in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on March 16, 2014.","creditText":"Yuri Kozyrev—NOOR for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/27027/the-crimea-referendum-in-pictures/","name":"The Crimea Referendum in Pictures"}}]}] ```