“Surprise Guest” at Biden-Putin Table at Summit
Shortly before his first face-to-face meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, US President Joe Biden pledged his country’s support for the Europeans in their confrontation with Moscow,
In an article published in The Washington Post yesterday (Saturday), President Biden pledged support for Washington’s “democratic alliances” in the face of growing crises and threats from Moscow and Beijing.
Biden, on his own and without any order, seems to have put the defense of his European allies on the agenda of the upcoming summit in Geneva, ten days from now.
Biden’s article stated : “President Putin understands that I will not hesitate to respond to any harmful future activities… When we meet, I will reaffirm the commitment of the United States, Europe and democracies that share the same ideas to defend human rights and dignity”.
Emphasizing his alignment with the European ally against Moscow, Biden wrote : “We stand united in the face of Russian challenges to European security, based on its aggression in Ukraine, and there will be no doubt about the determination of the United States to defend our democratic values, which we cannot separate from our interests”.
But with this tone toward Moscow, Biden emphasized in his article that Washington is “not seeking conflict,” noting that his extension of the New START Treaty is evidence of his desire to reduce tensions.
He continued in another paragraph of the article: “We want a stable and predictable relationship so that we can work with Russia on issues like strategic stability and arms control.”
On Wednesday, Biden will travel to Europe, where he will attend a Group of Seven summit and a NATO summit, and meet with the Russian president in Geneva on June 16.
The summit comes against the backdrop of the biggest crisis in relations between the two countries in years, with tensions rising over issues including accusations of cyberpiracy, election interference and the human rights issue in Russia.
Since taking office in January, Biden has stepped up pressure on the Kremlin, while his comments comparing Putin to a “murderer” have drawn strong criticism from Moscow.
But the two presidents expressed hope that relations would improve; The Russian president has indicated that he expects the talks to yield “positive” results.
