President Joe Biden said on Friday he’s ‘confident’ he will meet with Vladimir Putin this summer and downplayed his Russian counterpart’s aggressive actions on the Ukraine border, saying there were fewer troops there than before.
‘I’m confident we’ll be able to do it,’ Biden said when asked about a summer meeting. ‘We don’t have a specific time or place. That’s being worked on.’
And Biden said the situation on the border with Ukraine doesn’t change the prospects for the two leaders to meet.
‘It does not impact my desire to do a one on one meeting and if you notice he had more troops before. He’s withdrawn troops. He still has troops amassed but significantly less than he had a month ago,’ the president said.
His comments were a notable change in tone from his previous harsh rhetoric on Russian actions in the region.
President Joe Biden said he’s ‘confident’ he will meet with Vladimir Putin this summer but noted no specific time or location has been set yet
Biden also down played Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions on the Ukraine border, noting there are fewer troops than there had been previously
President Biden’s words came after Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed Washington’s support for Ukraine at a meeting Thursday with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.
Reports indicate Biden could meet with Putin in June when he’s in Europe for meetings with G7 and NATO leaders, where Russian troop buildup on the Ukraine border will be one of the topics on the agenda. The White House hasn’t confirmed a timing.
‘There’s no meeting to confirm at this time,’ White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at her briefing on Friday. ‘The timing, the components of an agenda, those are still ongoing.’
Biden is set to meet with leaders of the G7 group in Cornwall, England June 11-13, followed by a stop in Brussels for the annual NATO summit June 14th. Putin is not scheduled to be at either of those meetings. Russian was kicked out of the then-G8 for its actions in regards to the Ukraine.
Biden invited Putin to a summit after their relationship got off to a rocky start. The president said Putin was a killer with no soul and Putin shot back a wish for good health, which many saw as a veiled threat.
Asked by the Russian state news agency Tass on Thursday whether there was a list of possible places for the meeting, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had ‘still nothing to tell about the possible meeting.’
Meanwhile, Blinken said Ukraine’s ‘Euro-Atlantic aspirations’ were discussed with Zelensky and that the U.S. was ‘actively looking’ at strengthening its security assistance to Ukraine, but didn’t give details.
Zelensky also said the military support and the financial support from the U.S. ‘is increasing,’ but didn’t elaborate.
Both noted that while Russia has pulled back some of its forces from the border, a significant number of troops and equipment is still there. Blinken said Washington was watching the situation ‘very, very closely,’ as ‘Russia has the capacity, on fairly short notice, to take aggressive action if it so chooses.’
‘I can tell you, Mr. President, that we stand strongly with you,’ Blinken said.
Zelensky also said he invited Biden to visit Ukraine this year, and Blinken said the U.S. president would ‘welcome the opportunity at the right time.’
By visiting so early in his tenure, before any trip to Russia, Blinken signaled that Ukraine is a high priority for President Biden’s foreign policy. His visit was highly anticipated in Ukraine, with hopes for increased military aid and strong support for NATO membership being voiced on the front lines of the battle against Russia-backed separatists in the east and in the halls of government in Kyiv.
Efforts have stalled to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which has killed more than 14,000 people since it broke out in 2014.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pose for a photo after their talks in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Thursday
The US has condemned Russian build up on the Ukraine border, above Russian military’s armored vehicles roll into landing vessels after drills in Crimea
Naval assault groups disembark from BK-10M fast assault boats during an exercise by various branches of the Russian Armed Forces at the Opuk training ground
But the Biden administration did slap sanctions on a number of Russian figures and entities last month after concluding a lengthy review of Russian activities from election interference to the SolarWinds hack.
Blinken warned the US is watching Russian actions on cyber hacking and with jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, who recently ended a hunger strike.
‘If Russia acts recklessly or aggressively, as it did with the Solar Winds cyber intrusion, as it did with interference in our elections, as it did with what it’s done to Mr Navalny, then we will respond,’ Blinken told the BBC on Wednesday.
‘But at the same time, we would prefer a more stable and predictable relationship, and if Russia chooses that path there are areas we can cooperate in our mutual interest. But it’s really focused on Russia’s actions.’
The SolarWinds breach targeted at least nine vital US federal agencies, including the Treasury, Justice, Energy and Homeland Security departments. The scale of the hack is still being determined.
In February, Biden made it clear to Putin ‘that the days of the United States rolling over in the face of Russia’s aggressive actions… are over,’ after his predecessor Donald Trump was seen at times to avoid criticizing his Russian counterpart.
Blinken also met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and underscored the need for greater reforms.
‘I’m here really for a very simple reason, which is to, on behalf of President Biden, reaffirm – strongly – our commitment to the partnership between our countries, our commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence,’ Blinken told Kuleba.
He added that Washington will ‘work with you and continue to strengthen your own democracy, building institutions, advancing your reforms against corruption.’
Kuleba told Blinken that Kiev ‘deeply appreciates’ the US aid Ukraine has received to support its battle in the east against pro-Russian separatists, who are widely seen as having the Kremlin’s military and political backing.
The G7 renewed its call ‘for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders including its territorial waters.’
‘It is critical that Moscow now fully withdraws its forces and takes the necessary steps to help alleviate tensions,’ a G7 statement said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits the war-hit Donbas region, eastern Ukraine, as Ukraine holds out hope for greater U.S. assistance
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has warned that the United States will respond to reckless or aggressive acts by Russia; he’s pictured with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba
Russia last month amassed 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders, the biggest mobilisation since Moscow seized the majority-Russian peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and war broke out in eastern Ukraine.
Clashes in eastern Ukraine between the government and pro-Russian separatists have been intensifying since January, a bloody new phase in Europe’s only ongoing military conflict which has claimed more than 13,000 lives.
Russia quickly announced a pullback after the latest buildup, leading some experts to believe Putin was testing the will of Biden while seeking to intensify pressure on Ukraine.
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