Kerry to visit Kiev to show support Ukraine

Secretary of State John Kerry plans to visit Kiev on Tuesday in a gesture of support for the new Ukrainian government, a senior United States official said on Sunday as quoted by The New York Times. The announcement came just hours after Kerry warned that Russia risked eviction from the Group of 8 industrialized nations and that assets of Russian businesses could be frozen if the Kremlin did not reverse its military occupation of Crimea in Ukraine. Kerry had been scheduled to travel on Tuesday to an international meeting on Lebanon but will instead leave Washington on Monday for Ukraine, his first trip there as secretary of state. Kerry will meet with senior Ukrainian leaders, and talk with the Parliament and civil society leaders, a senior official said. He will discuss measures to support Ukraine politically, the official said. Earlier Sunday, Kerry warned that if Russia continued its military campaign in Ukraine, the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, “is not going to have a Sochi G-8,” a reference to the meeting of the industrialized nations that Mr. Putin of Russia is to host in June. “He may not even remain in the G-8 if this continues.” “He may find himself with asset freezes on Russian business,” Kerry added on an appearance on the NBC television program “Meet the Press.” “American business may pull back. There may be a further tumble of the ruble. There’s a huge price to pay.” Kerry’s comments came as the Obama administration and its Western allies tried to formulate their response to Putin’s decision to deploy Russian forces in Crimea. President Barack Obama has described the move as a “breach of international law.” But administration officials have been slow to enumerate what specific actions the United States and its partners are prepared to take. Source: MENA