Mitt Romney explains how he would have kept Russia from messing with Ukraine

last updated 8 January 2015

Failed presidential candidate Mitt Romney took a victory lap Sunday on Face the Nation, telling host Bob Schieffer that President Obama's "naiveté" and "faulty judgment" on Russia precipitated the situation in Ukraine. And Romney — whom Obama mocked in a presidential debate for suggesting that Russia is America's top "geopolitical foe" — explained how, had he been elected, he would have threatened Moscow so much it wouldn't have dared to mess with another country.

"Unfortunately, not having anticipated Russia's intentions, the president wasn't able to shape the kinds of events that may have been able to prevent the kinds of circumstances that you're seeing in the Ukraine, as well as the things that you're seeing in Syria," he said.

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Had we, from the very beginning of the demonstrations in Ukraine, had we worked with our allies and said, "Look, let's talk about the kinds of severe sanctions we would put in place if Russia were to decide to move," and had we then communicated that to Russia beforehand, not put in place the sanctions but communicate, "Look, Russia, stand down here. Don't you think about grabbing territory or these are the things that will have to happen. These are the actions we will take." [Face the Nation]

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Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.