Brushing aside President Obama's threat of more sanctions, Russian
President Vladimir Putin annexed the Crimean region of Ukraine on
Tuesday with the stroke of a pen, while NATO members criticized
Washington for getting caught off guard by Russia's military buildup.As the Russian national anthem played and cheering lawmakers wept, Mr. Putin and Crimean leaders signed a treaty in Moscow to make Crimea part of the Russian Federation, only two days after the region held a disputed referendum enforced by Russian troops.
"In the hearts and minds of people, Crimea has always been and remains an inseparable part of Russia," Mr. Putin said in a passionate speech, adding that he had no further ambitions for Ukrainian territory.
The annexation prompted a howl of protest in Kiev, where Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk called it "a robbery on an international scale" and warned that the crisis was careening toward war.
The shooting death of a Ukrainian soldier in Crimea by a masked gunman brought accusations that Russia was committing war crimes.
Mr. Obama kept a low profile a day after he imposed sanctions on 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials. Vice President Joseph R. Biden, in Poland on a mission to calm anxious European leaders, denounced Russia's "land grab" and warned Mr. Putin that the U.S. would issue more sanctions and defend its NATO allies.
"We join Poland and the international community condemning the continuing assault on Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and the blatant violation of international law by Mr. Putin and Russia," the vice president said in Warsaw.
Mr. Biden called Russia's takeover of Crimea "an almost unbelievable set of events."
His host, Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski, told Mr. Biden directly that Russia's actions should not have come as a surprise, given Moscow's significant increase in military spending.
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