Former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and President Biden have expressed regret over the lack of a stronger response to Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea, suggesting it may have prevented the current war in Ukraine. Obama's policy at the time was based on the belief that Ukraine was not a core interest for the US and that involving the country could lead to war with Russia.
The West's response to Russia's invasion of Crimea in 2014 has come under fresh scrutiny, with former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and President Biden suggesting that a stronger response at the time could have prevented the current war in Ukraine.
Obama's 2014 Crimean Inaction May Have Led to Ukraine War, Critics Allege
Stoltenberg, who led NATO from 2014 until last week, said in an interview with Politico, "If we had delivered a fraction of the weapons we have delivered after 2022, we may have actually prevented the war."
Biden is reported to have expressed a similar sentiment in an upcoming book by Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward. "They f---ed up in 2014," Biden said, referring to the Obama administration's response to Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Obama's 2014 Crimean Inaction May Have Led to Ukraine War, Critics Allege
The Obama administration provided Ukraine with defensive weapons, sanctioned the Kremlin, and kicked Russia out of the G-8, but some believe he should have done more. The administration stopped short of providing Ukraine with lethal weaponry, a policy that was reversed by President Trump in 2017.
In a 2014 interview, Obama downplayed the threat of Russia, saying, "The fact is that Ukraine, which is a non-NATO country, is going to be vulnerable to military domination by Russia no matter what we do."
Obama's 2014 Crimean Inaction May Have Led to Ukraine War, Critics Allege
In 2012, Obama famously dismissed Mitt Romney's assertion that Russia was the U.S.'s greatest geopolitical foe, saying, "The 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because the Cold War's been over for 20 years."
Obama has defended his 2014 policy, saying Ukraine was not the same country then as it is today. However, critics argue that his inaction emboldened Putin and led to the current conflict in Ukraine.
Obama's 2014 Crimean Inaction May Have Led to Ukraine War, Critics Allege
The U.S. has provided some $175 billion in security assistance and financial aid to Ukraine since the outbreak of war in 2022.
