面对香港局势 面对乌克兰局势 奥巴马选择不多

面对乌克兰局势 奥巴马选择不多  

Until Friday
the American approach to Ukraine's mounting crisis was designed explicitly to show the U.S. didn't view this as a return of Cold War frictions
but as an opportunity to work with Moscow to stabilize a former Soviet state.
That changed late in the day when President Barack Obama bluntly warned Russia against intervening in Ukraine
a stark indication that old tensions are seeping back into the relationship.
'We are now deeply concerned about military movements taken by the Russian Federation inside of Ukraine
' Mr. Obama said. 'Just days after the world came to Sochi for the Olympic Games
it would invite the condemnation of nations around the world.'
奥巴马表示，美国对俄罗斯联邦在乌克兰境内采取的军事行动深表关切。如果在全球运动员到俄罗斯参加冬季奥运会后仅数天时间发生这种情况，将招致全球各国的谴责。
The statement
delivered in a rare late-afternoon appearance at the White House press room
was an indication of the mounting concern in Washington that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be prepared to take drastic steps to keep Ukraine in Moscow's orbit. It sent a message that Mr. Putin should be under no illusions about the damage such steps would wreak.
The White House had been cautious in its ments on Ukraine. Since Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's overthrow a week ago
the administration avoided casting the revolution there as a victory for the West.
Mr. Obama's latest statements
like those of other top U.S. officials this week
lacked any indication of what the U.S. would do in response to a Russian military incursion. The warnings did
however
underscore the limited range of available options.
The U.S. has started talks with European partners about what steps they could take in response to Russian actions in Ukraine
including the possibility of the U.S. and its European allies boycotting the uping Group of Eight meeting in Sochi
according to U.S. officials.
The U.S. is also considering withholding some trade and mercial benefits which the Russians have been seeking. Russia currently has a team in Washington to discuss deepening trade and mercial ties.
The Gee W. Bush administration didn't move to enact sanctions against Moscow in 2008 after Russian tank columns annexed territories in the Western-leaning former Soviet republic of Geia.
Washington increased financial aid to Geia in the aftermath and tried to accelerate its membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union.
European officials are in a similar bind. They are seeking to work with Russia on Ukraine even when they appear to be pursuing conflicting objectives. European Council President Herman Van Rompuy spoke with Mr. Putin Friday afternoon and discussed the 'financial and security situation' in Ukraine
the EU said.
Still
a growing number of U.S. lawmakers and American allies said this week that Mr. Obama needs to do more to directly challenge Mr. Putin and acknowledge that the Kremlin's leader isn't an American partner.
Not doing so
they said
could lead the Kremlin to take even more aggressive steps to try and shape the future in Ukraine. It also could lead Russia to continue challenging U.S. interests in Europe
the Middle East and Asia.
'Someone needs to tell [the administration] the restart button is jammed
' said a Senior Arab official who's involved in Syria and Iran diplomacy. 'Even on a good day -- without Ukraine
Syria
Geia
or Iran -- the Russians won't play ball with you.'
Mr. Obama took office in 2009 mitting to a restart of relations with Russia after the Bush administration directly challenged Moscow in its own backyard by aggressively supporting NATO and EU membership for a number of former Soviet republics.
Senior U.S. officials have defended this approach in recent days. They cite a nuclear arms reduction agreement signed with Russia during Mr. Obama's first term; cooperation in moving military supplies to U.S. forces in Afghanistan; and a joint effort to rid Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of his chemical weapons.
Many U.S. lawmakers and American allies worry
however
that Mr. Putin is using these diplomatic initiatives more as a way to manage the U.S. than to rein in Syria
Iran or North Korea -- all Russian allies.
Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart
Sergei Lavrov
launched a diplomatic process in mid-2012 to try and end Syria's civil war a time when many Western governments were predicting Mr. Assad's regime was close to collapse. Since then
Russia and Iran have significantly increased their arms and shipments to Damascus under the cover of the international peace talks that have been taking place in Geneva
according to U.S. and Arab officials.
Moscow also succeeded in getting Mr. Obama to call off planned airstrikes on Mr. Assad's regime after promising to dismantle Syria's chemical weapons arsenal. That process has slowed in recent weeks
according to U.S. officials
and Mr. Putin used the diplomatic process to strengthen his stature internationally.
'Since the start of the Syrian civil war
Russia has shown it's plicit in these war crimes
but it is also capable of stopping them
' Sen. Tim Kaine (D.
Va.) said Thursday
while calling for more pressure on Moscow to cut off support for the Syrian regime.
U.S. officials have praised Russia for supporting the international talks currently under way in Vienna aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear program. But analysts have said Mr. Putin's involvement is purely aimed at securing Moscow's business interests and preventing the U.S. from launching any military strikes against Iran's nuclear installations.