Ukraine has accused Russia of finishing up an armed invasion by sending naval forces to occupy Sevastopol airport within the Crimea region.
Russia's Black Sea Fleet denies its servicemen are blocking the airport.
One other Crimean airport, Simferopol, has additionally been occupied by armed men, thought to be pro-Russia militia.
Relations between the two countries have been strained since Viktor Yanukovych was ousted as Ukrainian president final week.
Mr Yanukovych is now in Russia and expected to hold a news convention later in the city of Rostov-on-Don, close to the Ukrainian border.
He disappeared after leaving office however resurfaced in Russia on Thursday, asserting that he is nonetheless Ukraine's lawful president.
Ukraine's general prosecutor has said he will ask Russia to extradite Mr Yanukovych, if it is confirmed that he is nonetheless there.
In other developments:
- The BBC has seen eight Trucks with the black plates of the Russian army moving in the direction of Simferopol
- Unconfirmed experiences say eight Russian military helicopters have arrived in Sevastopol
- Ukraine's central financial institution has put a 15,000 hryvnia (1,000 euro; £820) restrict on day by day money withdrawals
- Armed Forces chief Yuriy Ilyin, appointed earlier this month by Mr Yanukovych, is sacked
Lynchpin of struggle
These tensions between Russia and Ukraine within the wake of Mr Yanukovych's departure have been significantly evident in Crimea, Ukraine's solely Russian-majority region.
The BBC's Bridget Kendall, in Moscow, says the Crimea is becoming the lynchpin of a struggle between Ukraine's new leaders and people loyal to Russia.
Armed males also arrived at Simferopol airport in a single day, some carrying Russian flags.
A man known as Vladimir instructed Reuters information company he was a volunteer serving to the group there, though he stated he did not know where they got here from.
"I am with the Folks's Militia of Crimea. We're simple folks, volunteers," he said.
Andriy Parubiy, performing chairman of Ukraine's Nationwide Safety Council, has claimed that each airports are now back underneath the control of Ukrainian authorities.
The airport occupation is latest in a sequence of moves to lift fears of unrest in Crimea, which historically leans in direction of Russia.
On Thursday, a bunch of unidentified armed males entered Crimea's parliament building by force, and hoisted a Russian flag on the roof.
The Crimean parliament later introduced it could maintain a referendum on increasing the region's autonomy from Ukraine on 25 May.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged his government to take care of relations with Kiev, but he is additionally giving the Crimean government humanitarian aid.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has called on all sides to "step back and avoid any kind of provocations".
Financial pressure
On prime of its political issues, Ukraine also faces enormous financial hurdles.
It says it wants $35 billion over the following two years to keep away from default on its loans.
Russia has suspended the next instalment of a $15bn mortgage due to the political uncertainty.
Switzerland and Austria introduced on Friday that it had launched an investigation towards Mr Yanukovych and his son Aleksander for "aggravated cash laundering".
Austria also mentioned it had frozen the property of 18 Ukrainians suspected of violating human rights and involvement in corruption. It did not give any names.
Crimea - the place ethnic Russians are in a majority - was transferred from Russia to Ukraine in 1954.
Ethnic Ukrainians loyal to Kiev and Muslim Tatars - whose animosity in direction of Russia stretches back to Stalin's deportations throughout World Struggle Two - have formed an alliance to oppose any transfer again towards Moscow.
Russia, along with the US, UK and France, pledged to uphold the territorial integrity of Ukraine in a memorandum signed in 1994.
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