Obama warns of ‘consequences’ in Ukraine as U.S. issues visa bans --- President Obama warned of “consequences” Wednesday if Ukraine failed to restore calm after a day of violence in the capital, while the State Department announced that it would bar 20 senior members of the country’s government from traveling to the United States. -- “We hold the Ukrainian government primarily responsible for making sure that it is dealing with peaceful protestors in an appropriate way,” Obama said. “We’re going to be watching closely, and we expect the Ukrainian government to show restraint, to not resort to violence in dealing with peaceful protestors.” -- Fiery street clashes that played out on live television Tuesday left at least 25 dead in and around Independence Square in central Kiev. The violence represented a failure of international hopes that President Viktor Yanukovych could settle differences with his political opponents peacefully and that the former Soviet state could begin to address its underlying financial crisis. -- The State Department said the 20 officials blocked from receiving U.S. visas were deemed to be complicit in Tuesday’s violence. It did not identify the officials but said they were all civilians. --- In brief remarks shortly after arriving in Toluca, Mexico, for an economic summit, Obama said a majority of Ukrainians see their future in Europe, a quiet reference to the tug of war between Western nations and Russia for influence in the nation of 19 million. He also said the United States expects protesters to remain peaceful. -- “There will be consequences if people step over the line,” Obama said. He did not spell out just what that line is, but said the United States is considering its next step in concert with European nations. He added a particular warning that the Ukrainian military should not “step into what should be a set of issues that can be resolved by civilians.” - More, Anne Gearan, - Washingtonpost