Putin must be shaking in his wool hat. The Obama regime (this time John Kerry) has drawn yet another red line on Russia. Kerry says that Russia has until Monday, March 17 to stop the annexation of Crimea or else there would be “a very serious series of responses on Monday.” I can see Putin now, laughing his ass off at America’s weak leaderships as 80,000 Russian troops sit on the Russia-Ukraine border ready to attack.
Secretary of State John Kerry warned that there would be “a very serious series of responses on Monday” from both Europe and the United States on Monday if a planned referendum on Crimean independence goes forward over the weekend.
Kerry, who was testifying on the State Department budget before the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Foreign Operations Subcommittee, will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in London on Friday in another attempt to resolve the crisis in Ukraine. The clock is ticking down to the March 16 referendum, which the United States views as illegitimate under Ukrainian law.
Kerry will continue his efforts to find a diplomatic resolution to the crisis ahead of the referendum, but isn’t backing off his threat of sanctions should no resolution be reached. The U.S. has already created a list of individuals who might face sanctions if the current standoff continues, he said.
“The question is whether Russia is prepared to negotiate with Ukraine to resolve this in a way that respects their interests, but in a way that doesn’t violate international law,” Kerry said at the hearing.