| ABC News | - |
President
Obama on Thursday said the U.S. and its allies “have to be prepared -
potentially - to respond,” to continued efforts by Russia to interfere
in southern Ukraine.
Obama: US ‘Prepared To Respond’ To Russian Aggression In Ukraine
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President Obama on Thursday said the U.S. and its allies “have to be
prepared – potentially – to respond,” to continued efforts by Russia to
interfere in southern Ukraine.
He held out the “the possibility, the prospect that diplomacy can
de-escalate the situation,” but warned that he was not counting on it.
However, he said that military options are still not on the table
“because this is not a situation that would be amendable to a clear
military solution.”
Secretary of State Kerry said earlier today
the lengthy four-way meeting on Ukraine had produced metrics for
measuring how quickly the situation there de-escalates, but added that
there is still more work to be done. Speaking to reporters in the White
House briefing room, Obama called the development “a glimmer of hope.”
“All of this, we believe, represents a good day’s work,” he said after
the meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. “But on the other hand, this day’s
work has produced principles. And it has produced commitments.
Turning to domestic issues, Obama also called upon Republicans to end
their “endless, fruitless” efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
“The repeal debate is and should be over,” the president said as he
announced that enrollment in Obamacare, his signature legislative
achievement, his now topped 8 million Americans with “millions more to
come next year and the year after.”
But some Republicans, he said, “still can’t bring themselves to admit that the Affordable Care Act is working.”
The president also expressed his frustration with states that have
chosen not to expand Medicaid “for no other reason than political
spite.”
“That’s wrong,” Obama said. “It should stop.”
In his remarks on Thursday, the president also took the opportunity to
express his “deepest condolences” to the Republic of Korea in the wake
of the ferry disaster earlier this week. Obama travels to Seoul next
week as part of a multi-country trip to Asia.
ABC’s Ali Weinberg contributed reporting.
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