but there is potential for a whole lot worse. >> no question. that's been the consistent warning from u.s. officials. don't -- to the russians. don't do any actions that can be misinterpreted. right? and now on the ground there, you are having actions that can easily be misinterpreted. are those forces that you're seeing there supported by the russians, directed by the russians? we don't know for sure. >> are they russians? >> or are they russians, exactly. we don't know for sure, but that's exactly the kind of thing that can be misinterpreted and can further inflame the situation on the ground. >> the outgoing -- now the former u.s. ambassador in moscow, mike mcfaul, he spoke out on cnn's "new day" today, 48 hours since he left moscow, back at stanford university. but i want you to listen to what he said, because it's ominous. >> it's a very dangerous situation, extremely tense. you have soldiers with guns, very well-armed in crimea, a part of ukraine, saying they are now loyal to russia. very, very dire situation.