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Obama in sticky situation as U.S.-Russia deal sputters
Last Updated: 2014-04-22 07:12 | Xinhua
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U.S. President Barack Obama is in a tough spot after a U.S.-Russia deal to de-escalate the Ukrainian crisis stalled amid weeks of critics'charges that the president is too timid in dealing with Russia.

The agreement reached last week called on pro-Russian demonstrators to vacate occupied buildings, squares and streets in Ukraine. But it has so far been ignored, calling into question the Obama administration's competence in finding a solution.

"This puts the Obama administration in a very difficult position because it makes the president look weak when agreements aren't respected," Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua.

That perception could hurt the president if it takes hold in the United States, West said. "The public could view that Obama is being taken to the cleaners by the Russians," he added.

Indeed, if the deal does not stick, Obama and European allies will be forced to turn threats of sanctions into action, some analysts said.

"If the agreements aren't implemented, it will force the U.S. and Europe to ratchet up the sanctions and get tougher on Russia," West said.

While the Obama administration has talked tough, threatening Russia with sanctions after what the White House called an illegal deployment of Russian troops in the Crimea, the president has failed to follow words with concrete action, critics said.

Sanctions thus far have amounted to refusing to grant visas to a handful of Russians, critics say, adding that what they bill Obama's non-confrontational stance is weakening the U.S. position on the world stage.

Bill O'Reilly, host of the political commentary program The O' Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, one of the country's most widely viewed news shows, said Obama has projected weakness on the world stage for how he is handling the situation.

U.S. Democrats want no part of confrontation and some Republicans are isolationists as well. This stance has resulted in a "weakening of presidential power," O'Reilly said.

The comments came after veteran Republican senator John McCain' s remark last month that Obama's "feckless" foreign policy had invited the crisis in Ukraine, echoing other Republican critics who called Obama weak and indecisive.

Still, West said Obama is following a graduated approach toward Russia, adding that current sanctions were meant to convey displeasure, but can be broadened as Russia engages in actions not supported by the international community.

Obama hopes that European nations will support the sanctions, and if Russia invades eastern Ukraine, it is likely that the Europeans will support tougher sanctions against Russia, experts said.

In an interview with CBS News last week, Obama said it was " absolutely clear" that Russia had violated Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity by "annexing Crimea" last month and was continuing to do so by supporting "non-state militias" in eastern Ukraine.

Moscow, however, has rejected accusations that Russia was destabilizing Ukraine. In a telephone conversation with Obama on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged the United States to use its influence to prevent bloodshed in Ukraine.

Washington and Moscow began to butt heads after Russia deployed troops to Crimea a few weeks back, with the U.S. blasting the move as contrary to international law and imposing sanctions, while Russia defended the move as an effort to protect ethnic Russians in the region.

David Clark, chairman of the Russia Foundation, told Xinhua that Russian policy makers see the United States as strong, but not as strong as it once was, adding that Washington is no longer focused on Europe as its main strategic priority following Obama's rebalance to Asia.

He added that Moscow is testing the United States and European responses to gauge their willingness to support Ukraine and challenge Russian behavior before deciding what to do next.

So far the Obama administration has ruled out military intervention in the Ukrainian crisis and repeatedly called for a diplomatic solution, as it faces hefty military budgetary cuts and war weary public after more than a decade of military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Kerry urges Russia to help implement Ukraine deal

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday urged Russia to "take concrete steps" to help implement the agreement aimed at defusing tensions in Ukraine.

In his telephone talk with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Kerry urged Russia to publicly call on "separatists to vacate illegal buildings and checkpoints, accept amnesty, and address their grievances politically," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said at a press briefing.

Russia, Ukraine, the European Union and the United States signed an agreement in Geneva last Thursday to de-escalate crisis in Ukraine, but militants in eastern Ukraine refused to heed the deal. >>>More

Russian FM says impossible to isolate Moscow

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday any attempt to isolate Russia was bound to fail and he urged European Union countries to make responsible and independent decisions on sanctions.

"Isolation has never led anyone to anything," Lavrov told reporters after talks with Mozambican counterpart Oldemiro Baloi.

"Those trying to isolate in various situations various countries and various governments were in the end compelled to talk to those whom they wanted to isolate," he said, adding it was impossible to isolate Russia from the rest of the world.

"We are a big, independent power which knows what we want," the Interfax news agency quoted Lavrov as saying.

He urged the United States to stop threatening Russia with sanctions over events in Ukraine while turning a blind eye to "atrocities" carried out by Ukrainian militants.

On Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Lavrov the full and immediate compliance of an agreement reached in Geneva last week during four-party talks was needed.

The document calls for the disarmament of "illegal armed groups" and an end to the occupation of the seized buildings in Ukraine's east.

The U.S. State Department also said the next few days would be a pivotal period for all sides to implement the statement's provisions.

Lavrov said no deadline had been set in that agreement.

Noting calls to isolate Russia had been echoed in several European countries, the Russian top diplomat said he also heard some sensible, objective and "grown up" European Union voices. 

Yanukovych calls for immediate dialogue to avert bloodshed

Ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych on Monday called for immediate dialogue between Kiev and eastern regions, urging the withdrawal of armed forces from those territories.

"Blood cannot be washed away. Stop!" Yanukovych said in a statement released in Russia's southwest city of Rostov-on-Don, where he has taken refuge, adding that the Kiev authorities "are one step away from bloodshed."

He requested the "immediate removal of all Ukrainian Armed Forces from the east of Ukraine, sent there as a detachment of the so-called 'national guard', dressed in military uniforms and armed with automatic weapons and grenades."

In addition, Yanukovych urged that crisis-torn country to hold referendum in the regions on such issues as federalization, the president's and parliament's powers. >>>More

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