Press TV
May 29, 2014
Putin ‘surrounded by NATO’, reversing course in Ukraine: Obama
President Barack Obama says that “American leadership” has forced Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is “surrounded by NATO members,” to reverse course in Ukraine.
US efforts to rally the world against Russia have changed the equation in Ukraine, Obama said in an interview with NPR News airing Thursday.
“When you look at events in Ukraine over the last two months, there is no doubt that our ability to mobilize international opinion rapidly has changed the balance and the equation in Ukraine,” the president said.
He pointed to the election of Ukrainian President-elect Petro Poroshenko and Putin’s announcement to withdraw troops from Ukraine’s border as proof that pressure was working.
“That’s an application of American leadership that is sustainable, consistent and is most likely to produce the kinds of results we want,” Obama said.
Trying to counter criticism that his administration was being outmaneuvered by the Kremlin, Obama said Putin’s actions in Ukraine did not reflect strength, but rather, in his perspective, the Russian leader “was operating from a position of weakness.”
“He felt as if he was being further and further surrounded by NATO members, folks who are looking west economically, from a security perspective. And even in Ukraine, the crown jewel of the former Soviet system, outside of Russia, an oligarchy that was corrupt was rejected by people on the streets,” Obama stated.
Tensions between Washington and Moscow heightened after Crimea declared independence from Ukraine and formally applied to become part of the Russian Federation following a referendum in March.
“The fact that Crimea, which historically is dominated by native Russians and Russian speakers, was annexed illegally does not in any way negate the fact that the way of life, the systems of economic organization, the notions of rule of law, those values that we hold dear, are ascendant, and you know, the other side is going to be on the defense,” Obama said.
In unusually blunt remarks on Friday, Putin pushed back against accusations by Obama that the Kremlin has been fomenting unrest in Ukraine.
“Who is he to judge? Who is he to judge, seriously?” the Russian leader said. “If he wants to judge people, why doesn’t he get a job in court somewhere?” he added, according to an interpreter.
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