The headlines are getting hot and heavy now. Just out from Bloomberg:

UKRAINE CRISIS 'BREEDING VERY SERIOUS RISKS FOR RUSSIA':CHURKIN

RADICAL EXTREMISTS TRYING TO TAKE CONTROL IN UKRAINE: CHURKIN

And Reuters with the punchline from Reuters:

RUSSIAN U.N. ENVOY CHURKIN SAYS UKRAINE'S OUSTED PRESIDENT YANUKOVICH HAS SENT LETTER TO PUTIN ASKING HIM TO USE RUSSIAN MILITARY FORCE IN UKRAINE

CNN has the letter contents:

Ukraine is on the brink of civil war. In the country, there is chaos and anarchy. The life, the security and the rights of people, particularly in the southeast part in Crimea are being threatened. So under the influence of Western countries, there are open acts of terrorism and violence. People are being persecuted for language and political reasons. So in this regard, I would call on the President of Russia, Mr. Putin, asking him to use the armed forces of the Russian Federation to establish legitimacy, peace, law and order, stability, and defending the people of Ukraine.



So what will Putin do if he still believes, as he has said, Yanuk to be the proper president of the Ukraine? Of course, this is all a smokescreen merely created to provide Russia yet another "justification" for its actions before the diplomatic circus that is the UN.

At the end of the day, if Obama's heartfelt pleadings about "costs" and what not did not stop Putin from invading the Ukraine, then certainly nothing aside from an armed retaliation will push him back.