This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/29/world/europe/obama-says-deeply-held-grievance-led-putin-to-seek-crimea-annexation.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Obama Says ‘Deeply Held Grievance’ Led Putin to Seek Crimea | Obama Says ‘Deeply Held Grievance’ Led Putin to Seek Crimea |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| WASHINGTON — President Obama on Friday attributed Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its buildup of troops at the border of Ukraine to a deep-seated resentment by President Vladimir V. Putin about the fall of the Soviet Union. | WASHINGTON — President Obama on Friday attributed Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its buildup of troops at the border of Ukraine to a deep-seated resentment by President Vladimir V. Putin about the fall of the Soviet Union. |
| “I think he’s been willing to show a deeply held grievance about what he considers to be the loss of the Soviet Union,” Mr. Obama told Scott Pelley of CBS News in an interview Friday as the president was leaving Rome for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. | “I think he’s been willing to show a deeply held grievance about what he considers to be the loss of the Soviet Union,” Mr. Obama told Scott Pelley of CBS News in an interview Friday as the president was leaving Rome for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. |
| Mr. Putin, the president added, “has said that he considers the breakup of the Soviet Union to be tragic. I think there’s a strong sense of Russian nationalism and a sense that somehow the West has taken advantage of Russia in the past.” | Mr. Putin, the president added, “has said that he considers the breakup of the Soviet Union to be tragic. I think there’s a strong sense of Russian nationalism and a sense that somehow the West has taken advantage of Russia in the past.” |
| Mr. Obama drew attention to the massing of Russian troops along the border of Ukraine, and urged Moscow to enter into talks about a peaceful resolution of the conflict with Ukraine. He said the presence of Russian forces could be an attempt to intimidate Ukraine, or it could be a signal of future military moves. | Mr. Obama drew attention to the massing of Russian troops along the border of Ukraine, and urged Moscow to enter into talks about a peaceful resolution of the conflict with Ukraine. He said the presence of Russian forces could be an attempt to intimidate Ukraine, or it could be a signal of future military moves. |
| Mr. Obama has been traveling in Europe this week, meeting with Western leaders to devise a comprehensive response to Russia’s actions in Crimea and to reassure Eastern European allies nervous about Russia’s advance. | Mr. Obama has been traveling in Europe this week, meeting with Western leaders to devise a comprehensive response to Russia’s actions in Crimea and to reassure Eastern European allies nervous about Russia’s advance. |
| In the interview, portions of which were broadcast on “CBS This Morning,” Mr. Obama called on Mr. Putin to pull back Russia’s troops and begin direct negotiations with the Ukrainian government. | In the interview, portions of which were broadcast on “CBS This Morning,” Mr. Obama called on Mr. Putin to pull back Russia’s troops and begin direct negotiations with the Ukrainian government. |
| “You would have thought that after a couple of decades that there’d be an awareness on the part of any Russian leader that the path forward is not to revert back to the kinds of practices that were so prevalent during the Cold War,” Mr. Obama said, “but in fact to move forward with further integration with the world economy and to be a responsible international citizen.” | “You would have thought that after a couple of decades that there’d be an awareness on the part of any Russian leader that the path forward is not to revert back to the kinds of practices that were so prevalent during the Cold War,” Mr. Obama said, “but in fact to move forward with further integration with the world economy and to be a responsible international citizen.” |
| Mr. Pelley also asked Mr. Obama about the president’s impressions of Pope Francis, who met with the president on Thursday. | Mr. Pelley also asked Mr. Obama about the president’s impressions of Pope Francis, who met with the president on Thursday. |
| “He projects the kind of humility and kindness that is consistent with my understanding, at least, of Jesus’s teachings,” Mr. Obama said. “He seems to have a good sense of humor.” | “He projects the kind of humility and kindness that is consistent with my understanding, at least, of Jesus’s teachings,” Mr. Obama said. “He seems to have a good sense of humor.” |
| “I think that his simplicity and his belief in the power of the spiritual over the material reflects itself in everything that he says and does,” he said. “And I suspect my sense is that he’s a little bit uncomfortable with all the trappings of being pope.” | “I think that his simplicity and his belief in the power of the spiritual over the material reflects itself in everything that he says and does,” he said. “And I suspect my sense is that he’s a little bit uncomfortable with all the trappings of being pope.” |
| More of the interview is to be broadcast on “CBS Evening News” on Friday. | More of the interview is to be broadcast on “CBS Evening News” on Friday. |
| In Saudi Arabia, Mr. Obama will meet with King Abdullah and take part in a dinner at the king’s desert compound. The trip is partly a fence-mending effort by the White House, which has seen relations with the monarchy sour in the wake of its hesitance to use force in Syria and efforts to negotiate a nuclear agreement with Iran. | |
| In a briefing for reporters just before the president left the United States for Europe, Susan E. Rice, the national security adviser, said that the meeting was intended to “strengthen” and “deepen” the relationship between the two countries. | |
| “Syria will be a topic of conversation,” Ms. Rice said. “So will Iran and the nuclear negotiations. They will talk about, I imagine, the situation in Egypt and the Middle East peace process. There will be a range of issues on the agenda.” | |