Speaking in Simferopol, the administration capital of Crimea, several members of the 168 monitors who tracked the referendum said they had found no evidence of irregularities or intimidation towards ethnic Ukrainians.

They were speaking at a news conference on the day the European Union said it will threaten Russia with a new cold war and a "far-reaching" economic blockade if Vladimir Putin annexes Crimea.

EU foreign ministers met in Brussels as Crimea's parliament formally d...