Biden shows firmness in exchange with Putin who calls for 'normalization'
US President Joe Biden at the White House, Thursday January 21, 2021, in Washington.
AP - Alex Brandon
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone.
The new US president met with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday for the first time since entering the White House a week ago.
On the menu, several issues at the heart of the tensions between the two countries.
Joe Biden has not avoided angry topics.
Publicity
Read more
From the treatment of the demonstrators by the Russian security forces, to the poisoning of the opponent Alexeï Navalny whom he considers worrying, including the Ukrainian dossier: all subjects that his predecessor carefully preferred to avoid.
According to the report of his spokesperson, the new American president also mentioned the accusations of "
Russian interference
in the 2020 election" in the United States, the recent giant cyberattack against American ministries attributed to Moscow, or even reports that Russia paid "bounties" to the Taliban to kill US soldiers.
►
See also: Pro-Navalny demonstrations in Russia: Moscow accuses Washington of interference
The White House clarified that Joe Biden was the initiator of this call.
According to the AP agency, the Kremlin had requested a meeting with the new American president as early as last week, but the latter had first wanted to meet with his European allies, the United Kingdom, France and the United Kingdom. Germany and with the Secretary General of NATO.
On the Russian side, the tone is more conciliatory.
In its report, the Kremlin underlines that Vladimir Poutine pleaded for "
a normalization of the relations between Russia and the United States
", which according to him "
would meet the interests of the two countries but also of those of all the international community
".
In the process, the Russian president submitted a bill which provides for an extension of the
Russian-American New Start agreement
on the limitation of nuclear weapons
by five years
.
►
To read also: Joe Biden, "Russophobe" or new friend of the Kremlin?
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Vladimir Poutine
Joe biden
United States
Russia
Diplomacy
On the same subject
North Stream 2: Washington announces sanctions against Russian pipeline-laying vessel
Joe Biden, "Russophobe" or New Friend of the Kremlin?
Pro-Navalny protests in Russia: Moscow accuses Washington of interference