A Ukrainian government order to cut off trade with the Russian-annexed Ukrainian region of Crimea has come into effect.

Civic activists -- many of them from Crimea's Crimean Tatar community -- who have been obstructing road traffic between the peninsula and the rest of Ukraine since late September said most of their activists will return home but some will remain to monitor compliance with the new policy.

The decision to stop trade across the administrative line was adopted by Kyiv on December 16.

Crimea has suffered significant power blackouts since unknown persons sabotaged power pylons supplying the region on November 21.

Power was restored following joint efforts by Russia and Ukraine until further sabotage on December 30.

With reporting by The Kyiv Post