U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, a Fort Worth Democrat, believes the United States can counter Russia’s insurgency in the Ukraine without deep military involvement.
In an interview with KERA, Veasey, a member of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee, outlined three steps the United States is taking to put pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Economic Sanctions
“These bad actors that are very wealthy that live in Russia- continue to isolate them by denying them access to their funds. Many of these people have their money in banks outside of Russia. And being able to cut them off from access to those funds is critical.”
Make Ukraine Energy Independent
“We need to figure out a way to make Ukraine energy independent. You know right now they’re very reliant on Russia for their oil just as many other people are in that region. And by being able to help them to have greater access to different streams of energy that can really continue to tighten on Russia.”
Encourage A Stronger European Response
“They (European countries) need to understand if they are not willing to make that sacrifice and not willing to help ratchet down on Russia the consequences later could be very great.”
Veasey’s comment come as Russia is feeling the effects of the Ukrainian crisis.
Friday the Standard & Poor’s rating agency cut Russia’s credit rating to near junk saying tensions over Ukraine have prompted investors to pull their money out of Russia.
Russia hiked interest rates to keep its sliding ruble from fueling inflation.
