His comments follows moves by Russia to ban imports of meat, fish, milk and milk products and fruit and vegetables from Australia, the US, the EU, Canada and Norway.
Speaking to media in Sydney, Mr Abbott said President Vladimir Putin needed to pull back its ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
“Let’s be very clear about this – Russia has been a bully,” he said.
“Russia is a big country trying to bully a small country. Right at this moment, Russian forces are massing on the border with Ukraine."
"If there is any movement by Russian forces across the border, it won’t be a humanitarian mission. It will be an invasion.
"I say to President Putin, if he wants to be regarded as a world leader as opposed to becoming an international outcast, hold your forces back."
Mr Abbott also foreshadowed moves towards stronger sanctions.
“We are working towards stronger sanctions,” he said.
“We have sanctions in place. I didn’t want to change the level of our sanctions while we had personnel on the ground within 20 or 30km of the Russian border.”
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