Ukraine crisis, missing jet dominates Obama's Malaysia visit

2014-04-27 244

It's a landmark visit aimed at transforming U.S. relations with Malaysia.

Still President Barack Obama's two day tour has been overshadowed by the crisis in Ukraine and the missing Malaysia airlines jet.

At a news conference with the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak , Obama said Europe and the US must join forces to impose sanctions on Russia to stop it destabilising Ukraine.

But any decision on punitive economic measures would depend on a concensus.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES BARACK OBAMA SAYING:

"The notion that, for us to grow forward sectorial sanctions on our own without the European, would be the most effective deterrent to Mr. Putin, I think it's factually wrong. We're gonna be in a stronger position to deter Mr. Putin when he sees that the world is unified, that United States and Europe is unified, rather than this is just the U.S."

During the conference, Obama didn't miss an opportunity to show the US' commitment to

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