Russian troops in control of the Belbek air base in Crimea fired warning shots into the air as around 300 Ukrainian soldiers, who previously manned the airfield, demanded their jobs back.
About a dozen Russian soldiers at the base warned the Ukrainians, who were marching unarmed, not to approach.
They fired several warning shots into the air and said they would shoot the Ukrainians if they continued to march toward them.
The stand-off comes as Vladimir Putin ordered thousands of Russian troops participating in military exercises near Ukraine's border to return to their base.
But the Russian president showed no signs of loosening the stranglehold on the Crimean peninsula, openly defying the threat of diplomatic and economic sanctions from world leaders.
Earlier this morning, two Russian warships on their way to Crimea passed through Istanbul's Bosphorus straits.
The Saratov and Yamal warships, which are usually based in the Mediterranean, were seen sailing unaccompanied through the Marmara Sea before entering the straits at around 7.30am local time (5.30am GMT).
At the same time as the Russian warships headed towards the Crimean, a Ukrainian ship called 'Hetman Sahaidachny entered the straits at Canakkale in Turkey
The Kremlin, which does not recognise the new Ukrainian leadership, insists it made the move to protect millions of Russians living in the region, with Moscow's UN envoy adding that ousted president Viktor Yanukovych had asked the country to send troops across the border.
Ukraine has effectively lost control of the Crimean peninsula and admits it has ‘no military options’ to make Moscow withdraw.
Although the Russian president has kept his silence on the crisis, his foreign minister said Russian troops were protecting people from ‘ultra-nationalist threats’ and would be staying put.
Justifying military action, Sergei Lavrov said: ‘This is a question of defending our citizens and compatriots, ensuring human rights, especially the right to life.’
The disclosure of ousted President Viktor Yanukovych's support for Russian military intervention was made at the third emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council since Friday.
Moscow's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin told a Security Council meeting Yanukovych wrote to Putin on Saturday requesting Russian troops be sent into Ukraine.
It came amid fears that the Kremlin might carry out more land grabs in pro-Russian eastern Ukraine.
Russia faced demands from almost all council members to pull its troops out of Crimea and got no support for its military action from close ally China.
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