From KCRW in Santa Monica and PRI, Public Radio International, this is To the Point.

After Crimea, what's Putin's next move?

Hello again, I'm Armin Al-Ne, and this is To the Point from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

The U.S. and the European Union have imposed economic sanctions against individual Russian and

Ukrainian leaders after yesterday's vote in Crimea.

As if to demonstrate calm and confidence Vladimir Putin stayed in Soshi for last night's

Paralympic Games closing ceremony.

But the world is waiting for his next move.

Annexing Crimea would be no easy task, has he gone too far to turn back? Will the West up the

ante at great cost to Europe's economy? We'll look at the options available to both sides

and the potential consequences. Today's talking point, newly elected mayors and key sponsors pull out of St. Patrick's Day

parades.

First, here's the news.

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Hello again, Mormon-Aul, back with To The Point. In yesterday's referendum, more than 95% of Crimean voters elected to leave Ukraine and rejoin Russia.

We'll look at the options available to Ukraine, the U.S., Western Europe, and most importantly, Vladimir Putin.

Today's talking point, gay and lesbian groups have been excluded from St. Patrick's Day parades in New York and Boston,

so newly elected mayors of both cities refused to march.

...