Obama says Russia propping up Ukraine, drawing criticism

In his final State of the Union address on Jan. 12, U.S. President Barack Obama made two references to Ukraine. In the first reference, he said that when the U.S. helps Ukraine defend its democracy, the international order is strengthened. The second reference drew wide criticism from Ukraine experts in the West. “Even as their economy contracts, Russia is pouring resources to prop up Ukraine and Syria – states they see slipping away from their orbit,” Obama said.

Zenon Zawada: Obama is known to rely on speechwriters and teleprompters when speaking, and it’s likely his writers made an error when characterizing the geopolitical situation in this corner of the world. Rather than propping up Ukraine, Russia is doing everything it can – both economically and politically – to destabilize Ukraine. That such an error was allowed reveals the extent to which Obama’s team isn’t familiar with the Russia-Ukraine conflict.