Kiev, March 21 (IANS): The Constitutional Court of Ukraine Friday declared Crimea's proclamation of independence from the country as unconstitutional, the court's press service said.

The Black Sea peninsula's decision to seek independence does not conform to the Constitution, which guarantees Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, Xinhua reported citing the court verdict.

The Crimean parliament Monday passed a declaration of independence from Ukraine after official results showed 96.77 percent of Crimean voters chose to join Russia in a referendum March 16.

The declaration appeals to the UN and its member states to recognise its existence and promises to "build its relations with other states on the basis of equality, peace, good neighbourly relations and other universally recognised principles of political, economic and cultural cooperation".

Russia was the first country to recognise Crimea as a sovereign and independent state.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and leaders of Crimea Tuesday signed a treaty accepting the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol as part of Russian territory.