President Biden said the tone of his highly-anticipated meeting with Russian President Putin was “good” and “positive,” saying he made “no threats” to his Russian counterpart, but warned of “consequences.”
Biden, on Wednesday, reflected on the hours-long meeting with Putin, saying “there was a lot of hype” around it, but said the meeting was “straightforward.”
“There is no substitute for face-to-face dialogue between leaders. None,” Biden said, noting that he and Putin “share a unique responsibility to manage the relationship between two powerful and proud countries.”
The president maintained that the U.S. relationship with Russia “has to be stable and predictable,” and said the countries “should be able to cooperate where it is in our mutual interest.”
“We have differences, where I want Putin to understand why I say what I say, and why I do what I do, and how I will respond,” Biden said. “My agenda is not against Russia, or anyone else. It is for the American people—fighting COVID, rebuilding our economy, reestablishing relationships around the world with our allies and friends and protecting the American people.”
