Ukrainian interior ministry issues arrest warrant for Viktor Yanukovych

Ukraine on Monday issued an arrest warrant for deposed president Viktor Yanukovych, and Russia questioned the legitimacy of the interim authorities.Interim Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said that Yanukovych was last seen with his chief of staff at the Balaklava presidential residence in Sevastopol, a port city on the Crimean peninsula which houses a large Russian naval base.The former president signed a note relinquishing his entitlement for state security and told his guards to hand in their weapons to police, before leaving in a convoy of three cars for an unknown destination, Avakov said on Facebook.The minister said that he had opened a criminal case and issued an arrest warrant for Yanukovych.Yanukovych and many of his closest allies deserted Kiev on Friday, allowing the opposition to impeach him and take over power.The Ukrainian parliament on Monday debated the appointment of a “cabinet of national trust.”Former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who was freed from prison Saturday, demanded that leaders of the anti-government protest movement should be considered for cabinet posts.Tymoshenko and rival opposition leader Vitaly Klitschko demanded punishment for those responsible for the death of dozens of protesters in Kiev last week.