Violence in Kiev 'Completely Outrageous', Says White House
The White House on Wednesday called the deadly violence on the streets of the Ukrainian capital "completely outrageous" and renewed its appeal to President Viktor Yanukovych to de-escalate the situation.
Clashes in Kiev between police and anti-government protesters that have claimed 26 lives are "completely outrageous" and "have no place in the 21st century," Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told reporters aboard Air Force One.
"The fact of the matter is we have made very clear to the Ukrainian government that it is their responsibility to allow for people (to) protest," Rhodes said.
"We consistently oppose any of the violence by all sides, but the responsibility is on the government to pull back its riot police, to call a truce and to engage in a meaningful discussion with the opposition about the way forward."
President Barack Obama was expected to comment on Ukraine later Wednesday during a trip to Toluca, Mexico, for a North American leaders summit, Rhodes said.
The close Obama advisor also warned of possible sanctions.
"We've made clear that we consider taking action against individuals who are responsible for acts of violence within Ukraine," he said.
"We have a toolkit for doing that that includes sanctions."
The overnight bloodshed came after some three months of mostly peaceful protests, which broke out after Yanukovych ditched a pact with the European Union in favor of closer ties with former Soviet master Russia.
"Clearly the people of Ukraine feel that their legitimate aspirations are not being met in the current political context," Rhodes said.
"And it's incumbent on the Ukrainian government to reach out to the opposition and find a way forward that can unify the country."
On Tuesday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Yanukovych to express Washington's "grave concern" regarding the crisis, saying government forces that stormed a protest camp on Kiev's Independence Square, or Maidan, should withdraw.
The White House said Biden made clear in the call that the United States condemned violence by any side, "but that the government bears special responsibility to de-escalate the situation."
U.S. lawmakers also were monitoring the unrest closely. Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, urged the Obama administration "to use every diplomatic means at its disposal, including sanctions, to bring accountability to those involved in acts of violence throughout Ukraine."
"Ukraine's future lies in Europe, not Vladimir Putin's Russia," Rubio added. "The world is watching the Yanukovych government's response."
Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer called the violence "unacceptable," adding on Twitter that "the Ukrainian people deserve freedom of speech and assembly."
U.S. Senator John McCain, who visited Kiev in December to stand with thousands of protesters, called on Obama to toughen his line on Yanukovych.
The U.S. president "should be working with Congress to prepare a set of sanctions against Ukraine that would be put into effect unless this comes to a halt," McCain told CNN Tuesday.
"We have to have the (sanctions) gun loaded, ready to fire that bullet" if the violent clashes continue, he added.
Source: Agence France Presse
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