Medvedev and Yanukovych
© UnknownMedvedev says that if Yanukovych was guilty of crimes, an impeachment process should have been launched against him in Ukraine and "everything else is just arbitrary. A seizure of power."

Russia says Viktor Yanukovych is still the legitimate head of the Ukrainian state and that Moscow does not recognize the new leaders in Ukraine.

The comments were made by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev who posted them on his Facebook page on Monday. He added that while the authority of President Yanukovych is practically negligible, he is still the legitimate leader of Ukraine according to the country's constitution.

The Russian prime minister also said that Moscow does not recognize Ukraine's interim leaders, as they violated the country's constitution when they took power. He said those new leaders won't last long.

"Ukraine is not for us the group of people who shed blood... and took power in violation of the constitution and other laws of their state," said Medvedev.

The prime minister continued by saying thatif Yanukovych was guilty of crimes, an impeachment process should have been launched against him in Ukraine and "everything else is just arbitrary. A seizure of power."

On February 23, the Ukrainian parliament ousted Yanukovych after months of unrest in the country. The turmoil began last November, when he refrained from signing an Association Agreement with the EU in favor of closer ties with Russia.

Russia has given sanctuary to Yanukovych, who, on February 28, held a press conference in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.

Yanukovych said the power in Ukraine was seized by a fascist minority and blamed what he called the West's irresponsible policies for the country's simmering crisis.