U.S. President Barack Obama warned Russia it faced costs from the West unless it changed course in Ukraine, and pledged to “stand with Ukraine” as he met with the country’s new prime minister in Washington.
“We will never surrender,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk vowed as he and Obama met in a White House show of support for the embattled leader.
“Mr. Putin – tear down this wall – the wall of more intimidation and military aggression,” Yatseniuk told reporters in remarks aimed at Russian President Vladimir Putin and a reference to then-President Ronald Reagan’s challenge to the Soviet Union in a 1987 speech at the Berlin Wall.
The EU sanctions, outlined in a document seen by Reuters, would slap travel bans and asset freezes on an as-yet-undecided list of people and firms accused by Brussels of violating the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the measures would be imposed on Monday unless diplomatic progress was made.
In Moscow, shares dropped 2.6 percent and the central bank was forced to spend $1.5 billion to prop up the ruble as investors confronted the prospect that Russia could face unexpectedly serious consequences for its plans to annex Crimea.
Russian troops have seized control of the Black Sea peninsula, where separatists have taken over the provincial government and are preparing for a referendum on Sunday to make the region part of Russia, which the West calls illegal.