RT March 2 2014
With hypocrisy befitting a hyper power, US President Obama expressed “deep concern” over Russia’s decision to send troops into Crimea, calling it a “violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity. . . and breach of international law.”
In a 90-minute conversation described as tense, Obama and Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, exchanged views on the crisis in Ukraine, where the country’s legitimate leader, Viktor Yanukovich, was ousted from power by violent street protests.
Obama reportedly warned Putin that Russia’s refusal to order the Russian soldiers back to their bases would result in the United States sitting on the sidelines of the upcoming G8 summit in Sochi, Russia, scheduled for June, as well as “greater political and economic isolation.”
Putin won parliamentary approval from the Senate over the weekend to dispatch military forces to the Crimean Peninsula. In defending his position, Putin drew attention to “ultra-nationalist elements” working alongside the opposition, which are being “encouraged by the current authorities in Kiev.”