Kremlin says will consider holding talks between Biden, Putin
April 14, 2021, 9:41 am

Kremlin says will consider holding talks between Biden, Putin

A view of the Kremlin and Red Square in downtown Moscow. (File photo)

The Kremlin said Wednesday it will consider US President Joe Biden’s proposal to hold a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a phone call on Tuesday, Biden proposed that the two leaders hold a summit “in the near future” that would come at a time of heightened tensions between the former Cold War rivals.

“It is early to talk about this meeting in terms of specifics. This is a new proposal and it will be studied,” Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

He added that there is still no set agenda for the summit, but said that “without a doubt bilateral ties are important” in areas of mutual interest.

Tensions between Moscow and Washington have escalated in recent weeks, with Russia building up its troops on the border with Ukraine, where government forces have been fighting pro-Russian separatists since the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The United States and its allies have called on Moscow to withdraw its forces.

“We consider the concerns of anyone – including the United States – regarding the movement of our armed forces on Russian territory to be unfounded,” Peskov said.

The Kremlin has repeatedly denied its involvement in the long-simmering conflict and rejected claims that it props up the separatist forces.

Ties were already strained after Washington demanded the release of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and slapped sanctions on Moscow over his poisoning in August last year.

Peskov, however, said that Navalny was not discussed in the Putin-Biden call.

A Kremlin statement on Tuesday said that the two leaders discussed Ukraine as well as the Iranian nuclear program, Afghanistan peace talks and climate change.

source: AFP

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.