Secretary of State John Kerry is making no secret of the way the U.S. government feels about Russia's recent military mobilization.
Kerry called Russia's invasion of Crimea and possible further expansion into Ukraine an "incredible act of aggression" Sunday on CBS' Face the Nation. Kerry made the rounds on the Sunday morning talk shows, also appearing on NBC's Meet the Press and ABC's This Week to condemn the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
See also: 5 Big Questions About the Future of Ukraine
"It is really a stunning willful choice by president Putin to invade another country," Kerry told Face the Nation's Bob Schieffer. "You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pretext."
In a 90-minute phone call with President Barack Obama on Saturday, Putin said Russia has the right to protect against "threats to the life and health of Russian citizens and compatriots on Ukrainian territory." After moving troops into Crimea, an autonomous, largely pro-Russia parliamentary republic within Ukraine, Russia has placed 150,000 troops along its land border with Ukraine, Reuters reports.
Newly elected Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, who took power after Russian ally Viktor Yanukovich was ousted and fled last week, said Russia's actions are a "declaration of war" against his country.
Kerry said Russia is violating the sovereignty of Ukraine, as well as several international agreements, including the UN charter, the Helsinki Final Act and the 1994 Budapest Memorandums. He said there would be "very serious repercussions" if Russia moves its troops into Ukraine, including harsh economic sanctions.
"The G-8 plus some others and all of them, every single one of them are prepared to go to the hilt in order to isolate Russia with respect to this invasion," Kerry said, referring to the Group of 8 nations, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, U.K., in addition to U.S. and Russia.
We're going to continue to engage diplomatically. It's the time for diplomacy. Nobody wants this to spiral in a worse direction.
— John Kerry (@JohnKerry) March 2, 2014
Kerry said the U.S. is prepared to boycott the upcoming G-8 summit scheduled for June in Sochi, Russia, where the Winter Olympic games recently concluded. Both Obama and Kerry are urging Russia to use peaceful tactics to protect its interests in Ukraine by engaging with the country's new government.
"We’re not trying to make this a battle between East and West, we’re not trying to make this a cold war," Kerry said.
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