In answer to the question of the presence of Russian troops in Crimea, Russian Minister of Defence Sergey Shoygu said, "Regarding the statements about use of Russian special forces in Ukrainian events, I can only say one thing – it's hard to search for a black cat in a dark room, especially if it's not there," and added cryptically that searching for the cat would be "stupid" if the cat is "intelligent, brave, and polite".
Küsimusele Venemaa relvajõudude osalemise kohta Krimmi sündmustes vastas Venemaa kaitseminister Sergei Šoigu: "Mis puutub avaldustesse vene erivägede kasutamise kohta Ukraina sündmustes, siis saan selle kohta öelda vaid üht: raske on otsida musta kassi pimedas toas, eriti siis, kui teda seal pole," lisades mõistatuslikult, et kassi otsimine on "rumal" tegevus, kui kass on "tark, julge ja viisakas".