KYIV – U.S. President Barack Obama in his State of the Union (SOTU) address to the U.S. Congress on January 12 chose questionable words relating to Ukraine, saying it, like Syria, is being propped up by Russia.
Speaking about threats faced by the U.S. and the world, Mr. Obama said: “Even as their economy severely contracts, Russia is pouring resources in to prop up Ukraine and Syria – client states they saw slipping away from their orbit.” According to various news media reports, apparently the word “client” was a departure from the president’s prepared text, which referred to “states,” not “client states.”