U.S. Could Offer Concessions If Putin Ignores Crimea Vote - Andrea Mitchell

[Igel]

3. Transdnistria.

That's the offer. Make Crimea into a non-state, one that is de facto Russian but not officially Russian.

The problem is the Russian bases. Putin can't accept this because he needs some "legitimate" government to sign the accord with, or he needs to maintain the occupation.

If he does the latter, he has the "Occupied West Bank" problem, occupying a territory that's not officially part of a country with all the mess that entails. Can you settle and build on it? Well, not according to some people's "international law." Not that most would care.

Moreover, if Crimea isn't part of a state, who controls the maritime regions that belonged to that territory? With it goes not only shipping lanes, but also gas fields and the territory that South Stream's going to transverse.

No, this would make life more complicated. Putin will recognize the results of the referendum, and in this case so will China and a fair number of other countries that will either see it as setting precedent that they can profit from in the future, or simply doing something to prevent the accusation that they're siding "the US" or "the West."