A government-backed Russian TV journalist warned that his country could turn the United States into “radioactive ash” Sunday as the Obama administration threatened action if Russia annexes Crimea in the wake of Sunday’s secession vote.
“Russia is the only country in the world that is realistically capable of turning the United States into radioactive ash,” Dmitry Kiselyov said on his weekly program.
Kiselyov — handpicked by Russian President Vladimir Putin last year to head a new state news agency — made the inflammatory remarks standing in front of a photo of a mushroom cloud.
The White House blasted the secession vote in Crimea as an illegal power grab by Russia, saying it violated both the Ukrainian constitution and international law.
In a statement, the White House noted that the referendum was held “under threats of violence and intimidation” following the Russian invasion two weeks ago, adding that Russia “has escalated its military intervention into Crimea and initiated threatening military exercises on Ukraine’s eastern border.”
“Russia’s actions are dangerous and destabilizing,” the statement said.
In the Crimean capital of Simferopol, fireworks exploded and cheering crowds waved Russian flags after the polls closed late Sunday. With half the ballots counted, the head of the referendum committee, Mikhail Malyshev, said more than 95 percent of voters had opted to secede and join Russia.
Crimea’s pro-Russia prime minister, Sergei Aksyonov, said the Crimean parliament would meet Monday to formally ask for annexation by Russia. Russian lawmaker Vladimir Zhirinovsky said annexation could take as little as three days, Interfax reported.
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told “Fox News Sunday” that Putin was playing “Russian roulette” and that the United States and Europe were ready to pull the trigger on “very robust sanctions.”
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) called the crisis “the ultimate result of a feckless foreign policy where no one believes in America’s strength anymore.”