White House no longer calls potential Russian invasion of Ukraine 'imminent'February 3, 2022 - 11:35 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The White House says it will no longer describe a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine as "imminent," suggesting the word sent an unintended message when officials used it last week. "I used that once. I think others have used that once. And then we stopped using it because I think it sent a message that we weren't intending to send, which was that we knew (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin had made a decision," press secretary Jen Psaki told a briefing Wednesday. "I would say the vast majority of times I've talked about it, we said he could invade at any time," she went on. "That's true. We still don't know that he's made a decision." The decision to discontinue the use of "imminent" came after a rift emerged between US and Ukrainian officials over how best to describe the threat from Russia. While Biden and his senior officials have warned Putin could order troops over the border at any moment, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has downplayed the prospects of imminent war, CNN reports. The discrepancy caused some frustrations to break into the open. Last week, Psaki's description of an attack as "imminent" drew anger in Kyiv. Ukrainian officials, including Zelensky, disagreed, and said the descriptions could cause panic and economic turmoil. "There is a feeling abroad that there is war here. That's not the case," Zelensky said during a news conference last Friday. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | About 32,000 rally in Yerevan to deman Pashinyan’s resignation About 31,700 people attended an opposition rally on Thursday, May 9 in Yerevan demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Armenian, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister to meet in Almaty Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov will meet in Almaty. Viva-MTS: Tech solutions to modernize infrastructure of border village The border village has been the focus of Viva-MTS and the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Values since 2015. Ucom's fixed network launched in Artashat To mark this occasion, the company has introduced a special offer exclusively for Artashat residents. |