Tag: US

US cautious on whether Russian troops to Donbass equals invasion

  The United States took a wait-and-see attitude Monday to President Vladimir Putin’s order for Russian troops to deploy in separatist areas of Ukraine, saying that talks remain possible “until the tanks roll.” President Joe Biden imposed sanctions on the two Russian-backed areas in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region. But a senior US official declined to characterize whether Putin’s order for Russian armed forces to conduct “peacekeeping” there counts as an invasion, thereby triggering much wider […]

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US climate envoy Kerry in Egypt to discuss COP27 summit

CAIRO, Egypt (AFP) – The United States and Egypt on Monday launched a working group to prepare for the COP27 climate summit this year, with US envoy John Kerry urging more countries to come on board. The meeting will take place in November in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, seeking to build on gains made at the previous conference in Glasgow last year. “In Glasgow, we made significant progress… we now need […]

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China denies making space junk set to crash into Moon

BEIJING, China (AFP) – China on Monday denied responsibility for a rocket set to slam into the Moon, after experts said the piece of space junk likely came from Beijing’s lunar exploration programme. Astronomers initially thought the wayward object was a chunk of a SpaceX rocket that blasted off seven years ago and was abandoned in space after completing its mission. But it is now believed to be the booster for the Chang’e 5-T1, launched […]

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Biden told Zelensky US committed to Ukraine’s ‘territorial integrity’: W.House

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden told his Ukrainian counterpart Voldymyr Zelensky on Monday that the United States stands by Ukraine’s territorial integrity after Russia said it was recognizing the independence of a swath of eastern Ukraine. In a phone call, Biden spoke “to reaffirm the commitment of the United States to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the White House said. Biden also “updated President Zelensky on the United States’ response, including our […]

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Images show new Russian troop deployments near Ukraine: US company

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – Satellite images show new deployments of Russian troops and military equipment near the Ukrainian border, a US company said Sunday evening. The pictures show “multiple new field deployments of armored equipment and troops” departing from existing military sites into forests and fields approximately 9 to 19 miles from Russia’s border with Ukraine, US satellite imagery company Maxar said in an email. The new photos, taken Sunday, appear to show vehicle […]

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Biden will meet Putin ‘at any time’ to prevent Ukraine war: Blinken

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden is willing to meet Russia’s Vladimir Putin “at any time” to prevent a war in Ukraine, according to his top diplomat who said Sunday Russia appeared on the verge of invading its neighbor. In a rapid-fire round of US talk shows, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CNN “everything we’re seeing suggests that this is dead serious, that we are on the brink of an invasion.” […]

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Biden says Putin has decided to invade Ukraine

WASHINGTON, Feb 18, 2022 (AFP) – President Joe Biden said Friday he is “convinced” that Vladimir Putin has decided to invade Ukraine within the week, an event that would trigger Western sanctions set to turn Russia into what a US official called a “pariah.” “As of this moment I’m convinced he’s made the decision,” Biden said in televised remarks at the White House. Biden said the attack could come in the next “week” or “days” […]

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Facebook co-workers now ‘Metamates’ as image evolves

  SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg laid out revamped company values Tuesday, urging workers to be “Metamates” who treat one another with respect and look to the future. Zuckerberg shared his note to employees on his Facebook page, the revamped credo coming on the heels of the internet giant being renamed Meta in October. “As we build the next chapter of our company as Meta, we just updated the values […]

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Meta agrees $90 million settlement in Facebook privacy suit

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook-parent Meta has agreed to pay $90 million to settle a 10-year-old lawsuit accusing it of tracking users online even after they logged off the social network, court records show. The agreement was filed Monday in a California court and if approved by a judge would put to rest one of the series of suits alleging the social media giant invaded users’ privacy. “Reaching a settlement in this case, […]

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Sandy Hook families settle with gunmaker for $73 mn over school massacre

by Peter HUTCHISON Agence France-Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) – Families of nine victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting have reached a $73 million settlement with US gunmaker Remington, in a landmark deal for a country traumatized by campus massacres. Lawyers for the plaintiffs said the settlement marks the first time a gun maker has been held liable for a mass shooting in the United States. Twenty-six children and teachers were shot dead […]

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Virgin Galactic re-opens ticket sales for $450,000

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States (AFP) – Virgin Galactic, which last year flew its flamboyant founder Richard Branson to space, will re-open ticket sales to the general public starting Wednesday, for the sum of $450,000. Previously, only people who had paid a deposit to be on a waiting list could buy new tickets — but now sales are once more open to everyone. “We plan to have our first 1,000 customers on board at the start […]

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Sea level projected to rise a foot on US coasts by 2050

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US coastline is expected to experience up to a foot (30 centimeters) of sea-level rise by the year 2050 because of climate change, making damaging floods far more common than today, a US government study said Tuesday. The Sea Level Rise Technical Report combined tide gauge and satellite observations with climate modeling from the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to make projections for the next 100 years. […]

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