President Joe Biden on Monday said a brief uprising by the paramilitary Wagner Group against the Kremlin was part of a struggle within the Russian system, and the US and its allies were not involved in it.
“We made clear we were not involved, we had nothing to do with this,” Mr Biden said in his first comments on the uprising by the mercenary group.
Mr Biden's message that the West was not involved was sent directly to the Russians through various diplomatic channels, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
He did not describe Russia's response.
At a White House event, Mr Biden addressed the power struggle that erupted at the weekend when the mutineers barrelled towards Moscow, only to stop before reaching the capital.
Mr Biden said he had directed his national security team to update him on the situation “hour by hour” and to prepare for a range of scenarios, which he did not detail.
Russian intelligence services were investigating whether western spy agencies played a role in the aborted mutiny, the Tass news agency quoted Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as saying on Monday.
“We could all spare Mr Lavrov the effort by just making it clear that there was no US involvement whatsoever, no western involvement,” Mr Kirby said.
Mr Biden said he and his team would continue assessing the fallout from the incident.
“It's still too early to reach a definitive conclusion about where this is going,” he added, stressing that his message to allies was “it's important that we stay completely co-ordinated”.
Mr Kirby said the US does not know the parameters of the deal reached between Mr Putin and Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin that ended the uprising.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, meanwhile, described the situation in Russia as “dynamic”.
“It is certainly a new thing to see President [Vladimir] Putin’s leadership directly challenged,” Mr Miller said.
“It’s a new thing to see Prigozhin directly questioning the rationale for this war and calling out that the war has been conducted essentially based on a lie.”
Washington contacted Moscow during Saturday’s events to reiterate that it viewed the crisis as an internal Russian affair “in which the United States is not involved and will not be involved,” Mr Miller added.
Wagner forces aim to topple Moscow's military leadership – in pictures
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Revival
Eminem
Interscope
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Smart words at Make Smart Cool
Make Smart Cool is not your usual festival. Dubbed “edutainment” by organisers Najahi Events, Make Smart Cool aims to inspire its youthful target audience through a mix of interactive presentation by social media influencers and a concert finale featuring Example with DJ Wire. Here are some of the speakers sharing their inspiration and experiences on the night.
Prince Ea
With his social media videos accumulating more half a billion views, the American motivational speaker is hot on the college circuit in the US, with talks that focus on the many ways to generate passion and motivation when it comes to learning.
Khalid Al Ameri
The Emirati columnist and presenter is much loved by local youth, with writings and presentations about education, entrepreneurship and family balance. His lectures on career and personal development are sought after by the education and business sector.
Ben Ouattara
Born to an Ivorian father and German mother, the Dubai-based fitness instructor and motivational speaker is all about conquering fears and insecurities. His talk focuses on the need to gain emotional and physical fitness when facing life’s challenges. As well managing his film production company, Ouattara is one of the official ambassadors of Dubai Expo2020.
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Ukraine 2 (Yaremchuk 06', Yarmolenko 27')
Portugal 1 (Ronaldo 72' pen)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The five pillars of Islam
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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Profile of Hala Insurance
Date Started: September 2018
Founders: Walid and Karim Dib
Based: Abu Dhabi
Employees: Nine
Amount raised: $1.2 million
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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