The United States is prepared to step up sanctions against Moscow if pro-Russian military actions in eastern Ukraine continue, the US envoy to the United Nations said yesterday.
Pro-Russian activists seized government buildings on Saturday in the eastern town of Slaviansk. Ukrainian security forces were trying to oust the activists.
The American ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, said on ABC's "This Week" that the latest events in Ukraine bore "the telltale signs of Moscow's involvement."
She said sanctions already imposed by the US had an impact: the Russian ruble has fallen to an all-time low, the country's stock market has depreciated by 20 percent and investors are fleeing the country.
"The president has made clear that, depending on Russian behavior, sectoral sanctions in energy, banking, mining could be on the table, and there's a lot in between," Power said. "I think we've seen that the sanctions can bite, and if actions like the kind we've seen over the last few days continue, you're going to see a ramping up of those sanctions."
Asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to seize eastern Ukraine, Power said his actions "give credence to the idea." Power said the rebellion has "all the telltale signs of what we saw in Crimea. It's professional, it's coordinated ..."
Republican Senator John McCain said the Obama administration's failure to punish Russia over Crimea had only emboldened Putin.
"The question is now, What do we do and what does he do?" he said. "It's obvious that he is encouraged by the fact that we sanctioned a few people and suspended - didn't even throw him out - of the G8."
McCain repeated his calls for tougher sanctions and for giving Ukrainians light weapons so they can defend themselves.
"They didn't fight in Crimea," he said. "But if he starts moving in further encroachment in this way into eastern Ukraine, they will fight."
Ukraine launches "anti-terrorist" operation
The Ukrainian government on Sunday launched an "anti-terrorist" operation in an eastern city where armed pro-Russian men seized police and security services buildings, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said.
"An anti-terrorist operation has begun in Slavyansk. It is being directed by the anti-terrorist center of the state security service. Forces from all the security units of the country have been brought in," Avakov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying on his Facebook page.
He said the men who seized the buildings opened fire on the approaching troops, adding that both sides had suffered casualties during the raid.
"There are deaths and injuries on both sides. On our side -- an SBU (Ukrainian Security Service) officer. The head of the SBU's anti-terrorist center has been wounded, as have four others," he said. "On the side of the separatists -- an unidentified number."
Avakov said the special forces had begun to "regroup" and urged local residents to remain calm and stay at home as a safety precaution.
"Pass this on to all civilians: they should leave the center of town, not come out of their apartments, and not go near the windows," he said.
The Ukrainian government's move came one day after about a dozen gunmen seized a police headquarters and the Security Service office in Slavyansk amid simmering tensions in the country's Russian-speaking regions.
A new wave of unrest erupted in Ukraine's east last weekend, when pro-Moscow activists seized several government buildings in the cities of Donetsk, Lugansk and Kharkov, demanding a referendum on autonomy and closer ties with Russia.
On March 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Crimean leaders signed a treaty to make the southern peninsula part of Russian territory after almost 97 percent of Crimean voters backed secession from Ukraine in a referendum.
Kiev has rejected the referendum and Crimea's integration with Russia, saying it was unconstitutional.
