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Reporter: The initial punishments that the U.S. is threatening against Russia for their
advances into Ukraine don't seem to be having much of an effect. What leverage do you believe
you have over President Putin at this point? And is the U.S. concerned primarily about
getting Russian forces out of Crimea, or are you also concerned about Russian forces moving
into parts of eastern Ukraine?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: All of the above. I spent the weekend talking to leaders across Europe,
and I think the world is largely united in recognizing that the steps Russia has taken
are a violation of Ukraine's sovereignty, Ukraine's territorial integrity; that they're
a violation of international law; they're a violation of previous agreements that Russia
has made with respect to how it treats and respects its neighbors. And, as a consequence,
we got strong statements from NATO, from the G7, condemning the actions that Russia has
taken. And we are going to continue these diplomatic efforts during the course of this
week.
My interest is seeing the Ukrainian people be able to determine their own destiny. Russia
has strong historic ties to the Ukraine. There are a lot of Russian nationals inside of Ukraine
as well as native Russians, as there are a lot of Ukrainians inside of Russia. There
are strong commercial ties between those two countries. And so all of those interests I
think can be recognized. But what cannot be done is for Russia, with impunity, to put
its soldiers on the ground and violate basic principles that are recognized around the
world.
And I think the strong condemnation that its received from countries around the world indicates
the degree to which Russia is on the wrong side of history on this.
We are strongly supportive of the interim Ukrainian government. John Kerry is going
to be traveling to Kyiv to indicate our support for the Ukrainian people, to offer very specific
and concrete packages of economic aid -- because one of the things we're concerned about is
stabilizing the economy even in the midst of this crisis. And what we are also indicating
to the Russians is that if, in fact, they continue on the current trajectory that they're
on, that we are examining a whole series of steps -- economic, diplomatic -- that will
isolate Russia and will have a negative impact on Russia's economy and its status in the
world.
We've already suspended preparations for the G8 summit. I think you can expect that there
would be further follow-up on that. We are taking a look a whole range of issues that
John Kerry mentioned yesterday.
And the question for Mr. Putin, who I spoke to directly, and the question for the Russian
government generally is if, in fact, their concern is that the rights of all Ukrainians
are respected, if, in fact, their primary concern, as they've stated, is that Russian
speakers and Russian nationals are not in any way harmed or abused or discriminated
against, then we should be able to set up international monitors and an international
effort that mediates between various parties, that is able to broker a deal that is satisfactory
to the Ukrainian people -- not to the United States, not to Russia, but to the Ukrainian
people -- and we should be able to deescalate the situation.
And so we've been very specific with the Russians about how that might be done under the auspices
of either the United States or the OSCE, or some other international organization. And
John Kerry will pursue that further when he arrives.
And so there are really two paths that Russia can take at this point. Obviously, the facts
on the ground in Crimea are deeply troubling and Russia has a large army that borders Ukraine.
But what is also true is that over time this will be a costly proposition for Russia. And
now is the time for them to consider whether they can serve their interests in a way that
resorts to diplomacy as opposed to force.
One last point I would make on this: I've heard a lot of talk from Congress about what
should be done, what they want to do. One thing they can do right away is to work with
the administration to help provide a package of assistance to the Ukrainians, to the people
and that government. And when they get back in, assuming the weather clears, I would hope
that that would be the first order of business. Because at this stage there should be unanimity
among Democrats and Republicans that when it comes to preserving the principle that
no country has the right to send in troops to another country unprovoked, we should be
able to come up with a unified position that stands outside of partisan politics. And my
expectation is, is that I'll be able to get Congress to work with us in order to achieve
that goal.