WASHINGTON — President Biden ripped Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “craven lust” for Ukrainian land in Poland’s capital Tuesday — but refrained from repeating his call for Putin’s ouster ahead of the Friday anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Biden stunned his own staff nearly 11 months ago when he said at the same venue that the Russian leader “cannot remain in power,” prompting an aide to quickly insist Biden “was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia” — though Biden later insisted he stood by his words.
The president was more measured and stuck to his teleprompter this time around — barely reacting to Putin’s own lengthy speech to the Russian parliament earlier Tuesday, other than to say NATO was not a threat to Moscow.
“President Putin’s craven lust for land and power will fail and the Ukrainian people’s love for their country will prevail,” Biden said in an outdoor public address near the Polish capital’s royal castle, which was rebuilt after World War II.
“Democracies of the world will stand guard over freedom today, tomorrow, and forever.”
Biden went on: “A dictator bent on rebuilding an empire will never be able to ease the people’s love of liberty. Brutality will never grind down the will of the free and Ukraine — Ukraine will never be a victory for Russia. Never.”
In his only direct response to Putin’s comments hours earlier, the president said: “The West was not planning to attack Russia, as Putin said today.”
Biden also teased that his administration would announce “more sanctions this week” against Russian figures — after targeting a vast swath of elite Russians over the past year.
Russian billionaire Yelena Baturina, the widow of ex-Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov, is among the dwindling number of Russian oligarchs not to face sanctions so far. Baturina paid $3.5 million to a firm associated with first son Hunter Biden in 2014, according to a 2020 report from Senate Republican-led committees.
Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of a feared new Russian offensive — Biden’s first such trip while distributing billions of dollars in US financial and military aid to help Ukraine fight off Putin’s invasion, which began on Feb. 24 last year.
The US leader secretly left Washington early Sunday and flew to southeastern Poland before taking a 10-hour overnight train ride to Kyiv — before returning to Poland for his Tuesday speech.
The White House informed the Kremlin of Biden’s trip to Kyiv ahead of time, though Biden aides insisted on the utmost secrecy and allowed just one US reporter and one photographer to travel with Biden, sans cellphones — rather than the typical 13-person traveling press pool.
Biden’s trip to Europe coincides with mounting skepticism of American aid to Ukraine among House Republicans and pressure for peace talks by some left-wing Democrats. On Sunday, several hundred protesters associated with anti-war groups and the Libertarian Party marched to the White House after speeches by former Reps. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii).
