US Urges Russia To Encourage Ukrainian Separatists To Put Down Their Arms

US Urges Russia To Encourage Ukrainian Separatists To Put Down Their Arms

The support of Russia for armed Ukrainian separatists concerned US President Barack Obama as he urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to encourage them to put down their arms.

President Obama discussed with President Putin on the actions of Russia in Ukraine, which did not encourage any diplomatic resolution in the crisis. The White House also cautioned Moscow on the possible effects for its actions in Ukraine particularly in connection to the armed Ukrainian separatists.

President Obama talked with President Putin on the request of the Russians. The call was direct and frank, which is a diplomatic way of saying that it was tense. A senior White House official revealed that president wanted to make sure that Russia knows that a diplomatic path was available. However, the actions of Russia did not make a diplomatic solution easy to attain.

On the other hand, President Putin revealed that the charges of the US on the meddling of Russia in Ukraine were baseless. In addition to the US, the European Union also indicated that it may increase sanctions against Moscow.

Jay Carner, White House spokesman, revealed that the provocative actions of Russia in eastern Ukraine have continued. It may result to a destabilization threat inside Ukraine.

Carner added that the provocations of Russia will have a cost. Although the costs will not be specified, some costs were already imposed on Russia. The new US sanctions are expected to target Russians who are close to President Putin along with Russian entities.

Jen Psaki, spokesman for the US State Department, indicated that sanctions may be imposed by the United States on entities and individuals in Russia. The sanctions are the most noticeable indicator of the anger of the US on the annexation of Crimea by Russia. It also shows the lowest point in US-Russia relations since the Cold War.

The White House also revealed that President Obama talked with President Francois Hollande of France in connection to the crisis even as it pushed Russia to encourage armed Ukrainian separatists in putting down their arms.

Posted by James Fried on Thursday April 17 2014, 2:47 AM EST. Ref: Telegraph. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0