Biden warns Putin: “We will respond to different actions that harm America’s interests” [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• US President Joe Biden met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva on Wednesday.
• The two leaders had a shorter meeting than planned, but noted that they both had a substantive discussion.
• Biden warned Putin that Russia should not engage in cyberattacks against the US.

In his first meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as the US president, Joe Biden said they were able to tackle all key issues concerning the two countries.

“Where we have differences, I want President Putin to understand why I say what I say, and why I do what I do. And how we will respond to different actions that harm America’s interests,” Biden said during a press conference after the summit in Geneva, Wednesday.

He also warned Putin that Russia would face ‘strong’ consequences if they engage in cyberattacks against the US or let his staunch critic Alexei Navanly pass away.

“We’ll find out whether we have a cybersecurity arrangement that begins to bring some order,” the American president said, as he oriented Putin on what the US values as its crucial infrastructure.

Biden also told Putin that if they let opposition leader Alexei Navalny pass away in jail, it would be “devastating for Russia.”

With regard to nuclear agreement talks, the Democrat leader said that the US will unveil a strategic dialogue which would be further assessed if it would end in a fruitful outcome.

“My agenda is not against Russia or anybody else. It’s for the American people,” Biden said.

The summit was more brief than planned, but Biden said that he and Putin were able to discuss all the crucial issues during their meetup. They, in fact, made a recap of their discussions with larger teams after an intimate meeting to make sure that both camps got it all covered.

“The bottom line is, I told President Putin that we need to have some basic rules of the road that we can all abide by,” Biden said.

On the other hand, in his own press conference after the summit, Putin said that their meeting was “constructive” and he did not feel “any kind of hostility.”

“Many of our joint positions are divergent, but nevertheless I think both sides manifested a determination to try and understand each other and try and converge our positions,” the Russian leader told the media.

“The meeting, you know, was actually very sufficient, and it was substantive and specific, and it was aimed at achieving results.”

Putin also announced that he and Biden both agreed to bring back their ambassadors in Washington and Moscow.

Source: AXIOS