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April 16, 2014: President Obama speaks at Community College of Allegheny County West Hills Center in Oakdale, Pa.AP

President Obama on Wednesday said there would be consequences for Russia if it continues its apparent efforts to move into Ukraine.

"Each time Russia takes these kinds of steps that are designed to destabilize Ukraine and violate their sovereignty, there are going to be consequences," President Obama said in an interview with CBS News. "Mr. Putin's decisions aren't just bad for Ukraine. Over the long-term, they're going to be bad for Russia."

Obama also downplayed a report made over the weekend by Pentagon officials that a Russian jet made several close-range passes by a Navy destroyer in the Black Sea, a move a U.S. official called "provocative."

"They're not interested in military confrontation with us; we don't need a war," Obama said. "What we do need is that countries like Ukraine can have relationships with their neighbors."

The administration has been working on a package of non-lethal assistance for Ukraine's military. The assistance, which was expected to be finalized this week, could include medical supplies and clothing for Ukraine's military, but was expected to stop short of providing body armor and other military-style equipment.

Ukraine has asked for military assistance from the U.S., a request that was believed to include lethal aid like weapons and ammunition. But Obama administration officials said they were not actively considering supplying Ukraine with lethal assistance, a step they said could be viewed as an escalatory act by the U.S. in the midst of an already tense situation.

Administration critics have been pressing Obama to arm the Ukrainian military in order to bolster its efforts to reassert control of its eastern region from pro-Russian insurgents who have seized numerous government facilities.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Obama warns of 'consequences' for Russia over Ukraine

WASHINGTON -- President Obama accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of supporting "non-state militias" in southern and eastern Ukraine in an attempt to destabilize the country, and warned that the Russian leader was risking economic pain and international isolation.

"What I have said consistently is that each time Russia takes these kinds of steps that are designed to destabilize Ukraine or violate their sovereignty that there are going to be consequences," Obama said in an interview Wednesday with CBS News.

He said he believed that sanctions imposed on Putin's allies and the threat of more to come had already taken a toll on the Russian economy and scared away investors.

"Mr. Putin's decisions are not just bad for Ukraine, over the long term theyre going to be bad for Russia," Obama said.

The White House said Wednesday that it was readying the next round of economic penalties against Russia, even as it prepared for a meeting Thursday in Geneva of senior-level diplomats from Ukraine, Russia, the U.S. and Europe.

We are actively preparing new sanctions, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said. We are also looking at tomorrows meeting for an indication that Russia will or intends to pursue a path of de-escalation rather than escalation.

Senior administration officials, who would not be named discussing the matter, said they did not expect a breakthrough at the Geneva talks and suggested that more sanctions could be issued soon afterward.

The next round of penalties would probably take aim at the so-called oligarchs and their business interests that have profited under Putin. Officials believe inflicting pain on this relatively small class of influential Russians is the best way to pressure Putin to change course.

Such measures would still fall well short of what the U.S. has laid out as the economic move of last resort: sector-wide sanctions. Officials have said theyre reserving that penalty to try to deter Putin from a full-scale invasion of eastern Ukraine.

The White House has been vague on whether a more incremental escalation from Moscow might also trigger the most severe sanctions. Officials also noted that theyre considering upping nonlethal assistance to Ukraine's military.

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Obama accuses Putin of destabilizing Ukraine

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