国际英语新闻:Obama sees room for Ukraine to be friend with West and Russia

WASHINGTON, March 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that there is room for Ukraine to be a friend with both the West and Russia.

"There is the ability for Ukraine to be a friend of the West's and a friend of Russia's as long as none of us are inside of Ukraine and trying to meddle and intervene, certainly not militarily, with decisions that properly belong to the Ukrainian people," Obama said at an elementary school here.

He was responding to Moscow's control of Ukraine's autonomous republic of Crimea, a move that came after pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted on Feb. 22 and fled to Russia following three-month protests.

Washington accused Moscow of sending thousands of troops to Crimea to join its Black Sea Fleet based in the peninsula, and has in response put on hold military-to-military engagements and trade talks with Russia. Sanctions on high-level Russian officials involved in the Crimea action are being considered by the Obama administration.

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin called events in Ukraine a "coup" and argued that the use of force was Russia's last resort to solving the ongoing crisis in the neighboring country.

He also accused Western countries of turning the political life in Ukraine into a farce.

Obama, while recognizing that "Russia has legitimate interests in what happens in a neighboring state," stressed however, "that does not give it the right to use force as a means of exerting influence inside of that state."

Warning Russian actions in Crimea "will push many countries further away from Russia," Obama again urged Russia to work with the international community to help stabilize the situation in Ukraine.

The White House on Tuesday announced an aid package for the Ukrainian government that includes 1 billion dollars in loan guarantees.