Voice of America quotes Transatlantic Relations Program Senior Fellow Adrian Karatnycky on Ukraine’s announcement that Russian banks are funding separatist groups in eastern Ukraine:
Russia also may waver, though, if faced by further Western action. According to Adrian Karatnycky, a foreign policy expert at the American think tank the Atlantic Council, Putin told Russian business executives not to worry about the prospect of sanctions during the standoff over Crimea because they should put country before profits.
“It was very clear Mr. Putin is willing to consider actions that can have a deleterious effect on the Russian market. But the question is how deep is his tolerance and how deep is the tolerance of the overall Russian elite to further such actions,” said Karatnycky.