Putin-Biden talks not breakthrough, but give hope for constructive development

The Tuesday negotiations between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden were hardly a breakthrough, but the very fact of a dialogue gives hope for a progress in the bilateral relations, Russian Federation Council First Deputy Chairman Vladimir Dzhabarov told TASS.

“It is unlikely that any breakthrough decisions were made there, but the very fact of negotiations gives hope for a constructive development and establishment of a dialogue. We will hope that Biden will calm down his allies, tell them that everything is fine, that they retain their positions; but, overall, I think, he will make it clear for them that neither Russia nor the Americans need a confrontation,” the senator said.

According to the senator, two hours are not really all that much considering the time spent on translation.

“Still, the negotiations happened. I believe that when leaders of two great powers meet, it is always better than when they don’t meet. I assume that, whichever way the talks went, each side has probably defined their red lines and expressed their concerns,” the lawmaker said.

Reuters reported that Biden voiced the “deep concerns of the United States and our European allies about Russia’s escalation of forces surrounding Ukraine,” the White House said, and “made clear that the U.S. and our allies would respond with strong economic and other measures in the event of military escalation.”

Biden reiterated U.S. support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the White House said, and called for de-escalation and diplomacy. Putin and Biden agreed to have their teams follow up.

Russian TV footage showed Biden and Putin greeting each other in a friendly manner at the start of the virtual summit.

The two leaders talked for almost exactly two hours, according to the White House.

Both sides say they hope the two leaders can hold an in-person summit to discuss ties between the two nations, which have long-standing differences over Syria, U.S. economic sanctions and alleged Russian cyber attacks on U.S. companies.

The Russian lawmaker, Dzhabarov underscored: “What’s reassuring is that Biden is an old-school politician after all. […] We will hope that the wise Biden will prevent the red lines from being crossed and will warn [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky that provocations in Ukraine’s southeast are unacceptable and so on,” he said. / Argumentum.al with TASS and Reuters