Former President Jimmy Carter said there was no way to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from laying claim to Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula recently occupied and annexed by its looming eastern neighbor.
“I think now, that’s far enough,” the Democrat told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” during a wide-ranging interview.
Mr. Carter, who served from 1977 to 1981, noted he occupied the White House during the Soviet Union’s intrusion into Afghanistan decades ago and that all options need to be on the table as the Western world respond to Russia’s latest moves.
He said the United States and its allies need to gird themselves for a stronger response if Russia extends its territorial ambitions beyond Crimea, which Mr. Carter regarded as having longstanding ties to Mr. Putin’s country.
“The rest of Ukraine is a different proposition,” he said.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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