Putin is cornered finally.
Pressure is growing on Europe to escalate sanctions against Russia.
The plane shot down over Ukraine had more than 200 Europeans who perished and Putin is indirectly to blame. The rebels he supported in Ukraine have used weapons handed to them by Russia to kill European residents. Whoever thought Putin had the legs to go toe to toe with Obama was clearly delusional.

Is he? The guy is a megalomaniac but sanctions are nonsense. Not even old Mugabe was fazed by them. No country is immune from the Industry-Military manipulation, not Europe, not the USA....and imposing any serious and painful sanctions against Russian industry, global conglomerates (especially energy ones) start taking hits, the energy supply-side becomes unstable as gas and oil prices rise, billionaires start arm-twisting politicians. Mr Joe Regular will quickly forget about Putin's aggression in Crimea and Ukraine and start bitching loudly when his fuel, gas and electricity budget is eviscerated; he will call for his local representative's head. No government wants this. In the end, the west will make high-pitched diplomatic noises, freeze accounts of a few oligarchs and then slap bureaucratic impediments in the way of Russian state corporations and that will be it. This is Russia, about 25% of the world's energy reserves are in just this one place. Plus its own advanced military industry. And nukes. You do not want to corner such an adversary, especially one who is a psychopath.
http://sharbelfaraj.word...ancellor-angela-merkel/
Putin is untouchable.

Meanwhile, 2 Ukraine military fighter jets have been SHOT down in the east (Republic of Donestk region).

Its all out war now.

http://www.businessweek....y-fighter-jets-shot-down

The European Union will expand its sanctions blacklist to target Vladimir Putin's inner circle and draw up further broad measures including an arms embargo and financial restrictions on Russian businesses, EU foreign ministers have decided following the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17.
@kabz, state your facts and stop this nonsense of I live in a cave, you sound like a fool.

The last I checked was that France ha not cancelled the warship sale to Russia, they say cancelling costs too high that is about USD 1B, and now see this from Britain http://news.yahoo.com/br...NRTQyNF8x?pt=tAD4SCT8P7
I think Kremlin still calling the shots 'chini ya maji'