Biden Goes There And Makes Putin Miss Trump Even More

Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 01:44 pm

While talking to reporters, President Biden threatened the one thing that Putin does not want, an increased NATO presence in Europe.

Transcript of Biden’s gaggle with reporters as provided to PoliticusUSA by the White House:

Q    President Biden, what did you convey on your call with Vladimir Putin?
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I made it clear to President Putin that if he — he makes any more moves and goes into Ukraine, we will have severe sanctions. We will increase our — our presence in Europe with our NATO Allies, and it will have to be a heavy price to pay for it.
 
Q    Did you get the sense that he is any less likely to invade Ukraine after your conversation?
 
THE PRESIDENT:  What I got the sense of is that he has agreed that we would have three major conferences in Europe beginning in the middle of the month with our senior staffs that relate to the OSCE, the Russia-NATO Council, as well as the continuation of discussions on our strategic doctrine. And so, he did not disagree with any of that.
 
And he laid out some of his concerns about NATO and the United States and Europe, and we laid out ours. And we said we’d begin to negotiate some of those issues. 
 
But I made it clear that they only could work if, in fact, he deescalated, not escalated, the situation there.
 
Q    Do you expect more concrete progress after the talks in January?
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Well, I always expect if you negotiate, you make progress, but we’ll see. We’ll see.

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Putin Has Gone From A Trump Puppet Trying To Destroy NATO To A Biden Nightmare

Donald Trump spent four years attempting to fracture US alliances, with specific attention paid to NATO. One of Putin’s goals has long been to expand Russia’s sphere of influence and get rid of NATO.

Biden’s threat to increase NATO’s presence is the last thing that Putin wants. Severe economic sanctions would cripple Russia’s already teetering economy, but if Putin knows that an invasion of Ukraine will result in a direct challenge to his sphere of influence, that should give him pause.

Putin had it good under Trump. He was able to do whatever he wanted, wherever he wanted with no US pushback.

That’s all gone now, as Biden is standing up to Putin, and he will make him pay dearly if he invades Ukraine.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association