On the heels of the European Union's approval of its first broad-based economic sanctions on Russia, President Obama today
announced an expanded set of sanctions against Russia aimed at the country's energy, financial and military sectors. He also announced the suspension of programs to finance expanded trade with Russia or to increase economic development in Russia.
The president began his remarks by recalling the lives lost in the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight 17, which he blamed on "Russia-backed separatists." The president accused "Russia and its proxies in Ukraine" of refusing to cooperate in the crash investigation and continuing to kill Ukrainian civilians. He said Russia was training and arming the separatists, and that its own military was firing on Ukraine from Russia, which he said was a violation of Ukraine's sovereignty.
President Obama said he has worked with our European allies to form a united response to Russia and that as a result, "the sanctions we're announcing today will have an even bigger bite." He also said the sanctions reflected America's commitment to follow through on its promises.
"Today, Russia is once again isolating itself from the international community, setting back decades of progress. [...] This is a choice that Russia, and President Putin in particular, has made." Instead of violating Ukrainian sovereignty, said the president, Russia should resolve its differences diplomatically, while recognizing the territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine.
Asked by a reporter whether the sanctions marked the beginning of a new cold war, the president said they didn't. "It's not a new cold war...it's a very specific issue," he said, naming Russia's refusal to recognize Ukraine's independent and sovereignty.
Asked about whether the U.S. would provide Ukraine with military support, the president said the issue "at this point" wasn't whether Ukraine could fight the separatists, but whether Russia would stop supporting them. He said that he felt economic sanctions would impose a sufficient penalty on Russia that it should change Putin's actions, but he ended by saying that ultimately, it was Putin who would have to decide to stop Russia's involvement in Ukraine.