Moscow, March 20 (IANS): The Russian State Duma or lower house of parliament Thursday approved a federal law on the accession of the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, where the Russian Black Sea fleet is based.

The draft laws were submitted to the Duma by President Vladimir Putin and were approved by the Russian constitutional court Wednesday, a day after Putin signed the treaty with leaders of Crimea to accept the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, a former special city-region of Ukraine, as parts of Russian territory.

Speaking at the Duma meeting on behalf of Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described these documents as a "turning point" in Russia and Crimea's history, Xinhua reported.

Earlier in the day, Lavrov said all legal procedures governing the accession of Crimea into Russia will be completed by the weekend.

Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea held a referendum Sunday with some 96.6 percent of voters opting to join Russia.