Kerry Grilled On ABC: 'Any Indication At All That President Putin Is Taking Heed of What President Obama Is Saying?

Secretary of State John Kerry said repeatedly Sunday morning that "all options are on the table" as the U.S. determines how to respond to Russia's decision to invade Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.

"The United States is currently considering all options," Kerry told ABC's George Stephanopoulos while appearing on "This Week."

[sharequote align="center"]“The hope of the U.S. and everybody in the world is not to see this escalate into a military confrontation."[/sharequote]

“The hope of the U.S. and everybody in the world is not to see this escalate into a military confrontation,” Kerry later added.

The Secretary of State instead suggested economic sanctions against Moscow would be a more likely step, saying he was "absolutely" willing to take such action.

“It may well come that we will have to engage in that kind of activity,” Kerry said.

Kerry, who repeatedly denounced Russia's latest actions, was also grilled by Stephanopoulos later in the interview, with the ABC host asking if there was any sense Russian President Vladimir Putin was listening to the multiple warnings issued by the U.S.

“Do you have any indication at all that President Putin is taking heed of what President Obama is saying?” Stephanopoulos asked, referring to a lengthy phone discussion the two world leaders had yesterday.

“Well, they just had the conservation yesterday,” Kerry said. “We’re going to continue to engage diplomatically. This is a time for diplomacy, in order to steer this away from an increase of tension and the level of the crisis.”

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