She Said That? 2/12/15

From German Chancellor Angela Merkel, referring to an agreement reached in  talks in Minsk, Belorussia, between Merkel, French President François Hollande, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko for a cease-fire in Ukrainian hostilities:

This is a glimmer of hope, no more no less. It is very important that words are followed by actions.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/12/us-ukraine-crisis-idUSKBN0LG0FX20150212

Notice who was missing from the lineup—no President Obama or Secretary of State Kerry. The Europeans decided they could solve a European problem without US interference, and that was probably why they were able to reach an agreement and why there is now a “glimmer of hope.” If those two pompous windbags had been there, blustering about, issuing statements, posing for the cameras, and threatening “costs,” an agreement probably would not have been reached.