Sec. Kerry on Ukraine (MSNBC -Andrea Mitchell)

[MBS]

3. Totally agree.

This is a very delicate and fraught situation. High emotions on all sides, combined with important cultural, geographical, political and economic issues, with grudges and fears (some of them even justified) that go back centuries. Even the pro-Ukraine contingent itself consists of many constituencies, including both idealistic activists who are worthy of admiration but also some antisemitic far-right nationalists . Plus political corruption on all sides. And Putin and his army right over the border, ready to come to the "rescue" of Sebastopol Russians.
In a front page story this week (yesterday? today?), the NYT implicitly criticized Obama for being "wary", with a tone that even (bizarrely, shamefully) suggested some nostalgia for the dangerously simplistic black-white warmonger approach of W. (SHAME on you, NYT). Well, Obama is right to be wary: there are a lot of serious and complex and consequential issues -- and PEOPLE -- at stake.
Sounds like a job for the Super Diplomat Sec. Kerry! : )