WASHINGTON – At a meeting with reporters on Tuesday afternoon, White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed that President Biden was scheduled to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Psaki said the call was scheduled for the same time as his briefing and described some of the president’s plans for the conversation, which included addressing “concerns” arising from the Kremlin’s policies.
Among the issues on the agenda were arms control and the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Biden “called … President Putin this afternoon with the intention of discussing our willingness to extend the New START for five years and also to reaffirm our strong support for Ukraine’s sovereignty in the face of … continued aggression from Russia,” he said Psaki.
The new START is a nuclear weapons reduction treaty that will expire next month. Russia annexed the Ukrainian territory of Crimea in 2014, which led to a sharp deterioration in relations between Moscow and Washington. Other issues discussed included “the SolarWinds hack, reports from Russia rewarding US soldiers in Afghanistan, interference in the 2020 elections, the poisoning of Alexei Navalny and the treatment of peaceful demonstrators by Russian security forces”.
In December, it was revealed that SolarWinds, a major information technology provider that works with U.S. companies and government agencies, was the victim of a massive hack, which was traced back to Russian intelligence. Last June, reports emerged that Russia paid Afghan militants to attack American troops in that country. Russian intelligence is also linked to efforts to interfere in the recent American elections.
Putin’s opposition leader Navalny was poisoned by a nervous agent in August, and investigators blamed the country’s intelligence agencies. After recovering from the poisoning in Germany, Navalny returned to Russia on January 17 and was arrested. His detention sparked widespread protests in Russia.
Psaki said Biden raised these issues to make it clear to Putin that the United States will not accept Russian aggression.
“His intention was also to make it clear that the United States will act strongly in the defense of our national interests in response to Russia’s evil actions,” said Psaki.
Made just six days after Biden took office, the call was a stark contrast to the posture of his predecessor, Donald Trump. While the Trump administration agreed with Congressional sanctions on Russia, Trump was criticized for not doing more to publicly criticize Putin. The Trump administration claimed that there were “divergent opinions” about the alleged Russian rewards in Afghanistan, and the former president has repeatedly rejected US intelligence assessments that the Kremlin interfered on his behalf in the 2016 elections.
At an unrelated event at the White House shortly after Psaki’s briefing, Biden was asked about his connection to Putin by Peter Doocy, a Fox News correspondent.
“What did you talk to Putin about?” Asked Doocy.
“You,” joked Biden, adding, “He sends the best he has.”
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