Posted on 03/04/2014 5:39:21 PM PST by Jim Robinson
The United States took another punitive measure against Russia Tuesday, announcing it would not participate in a G8 Summit scheduled for Sochi in June unless Moscow reversed course on Ukraine, Reuters reported.
The move followed an hour-long phone conversation between President Obama and West German Chancellor Angela Merkel that senior administration officials told Fox News focused on trying to construct a diplomatic off-ramp to get Russian President Vladimir Putin to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine.
The White House released a statement saying the two leaders “agreed on the importance of de-escalating the situation, including through the deployment international observers and human rights monitors, and of initiating direct talks between Russia and Ukraine.”
The U.S. will boycott the Sochi G8 summit unless Moscow reverses its position on Ukraine, Reuters quoted a senior administration official as saying.
Officials acknowledged to Fox News that Europeans are skeptical of sanctions against Russia that may harm European economies, but these allies are also concerned that without sanctions, the situation in Ukraine could escalate.
Pressed on any potential military action if Putin takes more territory, the officials said they still see no scenario involving military action of any kind
Earlier Tuesday, at a press conference, Putin insisted that none of his troops had moved into Crimea -- a statement that stunned U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.
When informed by a reporter of Putin's claim, Kerry -- who arrived in Kiev on Tuesday -- smiled and said, "He really denied there were troops in Crimea?"
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
De nada. ;-)
Perhaps Kerry can organize ‘Winter Athlete’ and have US team members throw their Olympic medals over the Sochi fence.
“And we’ll live with what the G7 people decide, right?”
The other G7 countries will follow. This summit’s not going to happen unless the Russians pull out of Ukraine (which is to say, this summit’s not going to happen).
I’m sure that Putin will reverse course any minute.
You better believe it. I bet even as I type this, Putin is wiping tears away, sniffling and trying to overcome how badly his feelings are hurt by this.
Boycott? Here’s a crazy idea: kick Russia out of the G8. Oh wait, we’re dealing with a guy who is touting his “victories” in Egypt and Syria.
I hope you are right, but the way things have been going...
Oooooooooooooowwwwwwww, I’m sure Putin is soooo scaaaared.
These people are insane, but then again, they’re communist liberals...
It should have read, The US will take Putinative measures - that’ll scare Putin like nothing else. Same results - NOTHING!
Putin’s puttin’ on the Blitz
while Obama’s suffering from the shits (i.e. Putin scares the crap out of him).
Somebody send Anthony Weiner to Moscow. That’s our only weapon that will churl someone’s stomach. But, we could really hurt Putin by sending in a delegation that not only includes Weiner-man, but Maxine Waters (your worse nightmare on steroids), Debbie Wasserman-Putz (she’ll bore him to death), Nancy Pelosi (her face will explode like an IED and kill him), and Alan Grayson who will insult him to death.
Cold War over. Peace and Kumbayas all around.
Somebody wake me up, please!
I thought G-8 members had already agreed to ‘suspend’ the summit earlier on when this began.....must be they’ve determined better ‘each’ state independantly they are protesting Russia by not attending...this will now give them political posturing points.
Perhaps he has secured agreement from other seven to refuse to go and isolate Russia. A better course would be to line up support, announce first and then the others join. Perhaps that is what Obama’s advisors are doing here. Otherwise it makes no sense.
Putin is about ten steps ahead of our hapless foreign policy wonks led by Lurch. Vlad controls the political chessboard and he knows it. The west is so void of leadership. If only we could turn back the clock to three decades ago when Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II were standing up to the communist threat. That was the major league club in action. The leaders in charge today are single A at best and the world is screwed at the moment.
Pathetic. Obama is just a pathetic excuse for a president and a man.
You could easily see this as _resident Stompyfoot taking the ball and storming off the playground... but the truth of the matter is he dropped the ball long ago.
This is bad news... all of the foreign policy work to break the Soviet Union... and end the Cold War... lost... in a little over 5 years... poof.
Expect China to invade Taiwan, next.
“... he’d send moochelle over...”
That’s why The Mooch is going to China.
Obama will have Putin surrounded!
Ohhhhh Nooooo!!not miss the g8 ????????? God no!!!!!!
Being a European it is interesting to me to follow the discussion about the Ukraine in the US. Here on the old continent we have a slightly different point of view.
The world changed fundamentally in the past few years but some things never changed. Of course Obama like all other US-Presidents before him has practically no millitary means to put pressure on Putin. We all know that Russia has enormous conventional and nuclear abillities. Even for the mighty US forces it is far too dangerous to engage the red army. Therefore only economic sanctions are a realistic alternative. Success will be limited since such attempts never worked in the past and it is not the US that are the partners of the Russians. US sanctions are de facto irrelevant to Russia since you guys simply are not important to them. The EU, particulary Germany is the main trading partner of Russia. But after all I doubt that we will follow Obamas course since we would loose far too much.
The heating of my house is working with Russian gas and the Russians are on a good way to overtake the US in economical importance from a European point of view (our trade volumina with Russia is 2/3 of the trade volumina with the US). Nevertheless this is not the biggest problem we have with the US. It is a matter of values and trust. The gap between Europe and the US is widening every day. I.e. the bugging affair (Merkels handy and many others) made clear to most Europeans that from a American view we are no close friends but simply subordinates.
Therefore we have no reason to help the US (except of lip service) in this matter.
Has Europe reason to help the Ukraine?
The question is who needs really help there. We should not forget that the Crimea is in fact Russian territory. Khrushchev added the former Russian peninsula to the Ukraine during Soviet times (in the 50ties). 58 % of the people living there are Russians. Therefore the Russian “invasion” of the Crimea is something quite understandable to me. Imagine a area that is inhabited by 58.5 % Americans undergoing such political changes. We would see bazillons of lethernecks and aircraft carriers there. You Americans have a disposition for martial appearances.
Janukowich -like it or not- was the last democratic elected president of the Ukraine. Since the Ukraine is a deeply devided country with two different ethnic groups that hate each other, it is quite logical that there will be winners and loosers in such a gouverment change. BTW I understand the Russians that they do not want to live under Ukrainian regime. The best thing for them would be a divorce. The Czechs and the Slovaks made it, even the Jews and the Arabs are thinking about it. It would be not the end of the world.
A friendly advice from a old friend of the US is being reluctant. The US only can loose in this game. In the end they will stand alone.
Regards from Europe
Andreas
No problem, friend. Putin is your problem. Obama is ours. And our embarrassment.
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