Boeing 777 Tragedy May Strengthen Stand Against Russia in the West - The New York Times
Boeing 777 crash in the middle of a war zone has exacerbated already volatile international crisis.
It may may bolster President Obama's efforts to isolate Russia if evidence points to complicity by Moscow, Censor.NET reports, citing the New York Times.
"The Obama administration already has additional sanctions prepared that could be put into effect quickly if Mr. Obama so chooses. The question is does this finally move the Europeans across that threshold," the article said.
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The newspaper points out that European officials were cautious in their initial reactions, seeking time and information before jumping to possible consequences. But majority of the passengers were Europeans, mostly from the Netherlands. "This could increase pressure on European governments to respond. As it happens, the Netherlands is one of Russia's largest trading partners and therefore has been among the European nations concerned about the economic impact of harsher measures against Moscow," the article said.
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Some analysts said the disaster would invariably lead to a re-evaluation of Europe's approach to Russia. "Ultimately this is going to ratchet up pressure within Europe to do what they should have done a long time ago," said John E. Herbst, a former American ambassador to Ukraine.
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"There does seem to be some growing awareness that it probably had to be Russian insurgents," said Hillary Rodham Clinton, a Mr. Obama's former secretary of state. "It was a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur over European territory. There should be outrage in European capitals."
