Poking the bear

Yesterday, the Obama Administration issued a warning to the Russians to stay out of Ukrainian affairs. So this morning we awake to pictures of armed soldiers with no patches on their uniform at two airports in the Crimea. From the Washington Times;

But Thursday’s events and the grim warnings from powerful U.S. lawmakers that Russia ultimately will invade Ukraine just as it did Georgia in 2008 demonstrate that the Obama administration, whether it likes it or not, is at odds again with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the global stage.

Analysts say there is little the U.S. can do, other than issue strongly worded statements or pursue some economic sanctions, if the situation deteriorates.

For now, the White House is sticking with statements.

“We strongly support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and we expect other nations to do the same and so we are closely watching Russian military exercises along the Ukrainian border,” White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters Thursday.

That was yesterday, today, troops at airports, and ships in the Black Sea, says Fox News;

A Reuters eyewitness at the scene said the men were dressed in full battle gear and carrying assault rifles and machine guns. They were reportedly moving freely in an out of a control tower.

On Thursday, masked gunmen with rocket-propelled grenades and sniper rifles seized the parliament and government offices in Simferopol and raised the Russian flag over the parliament building.

Ukrainian officials sharply denounced the move. Ukrainian police cordoned off the area, but didn’t confront the gunmen.

The more that this administration tries to do in regards to this action, the weaker they will appear on the world stage. Putin’s gonna do what Putin is gonna do. We’ve already made it clear that we don’t approve, and that’s all we can reasonably do. It was charitable of the Washington Times to call some US lawmakers “powerful” but we’re really powerless in this whole thing. What are we going to do? Drone Putin?

Category: Barack Obama/Joe Biden, Foreign Policy