Dialogue between Russia and US necessary in any case, says Kremlin

US President Joe Biden’s personal insults to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have a negative impact on relations between the two countries, but the dialogue between Moscow and Washington is necessary in any case, it is in the interests of the whole world, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.

“Personal insults cannot but leave their mark on relations between heads of state. Especially personal insults, which in general should have no place in the rhetoric of the head of state,” the Kremlin spokesman said, “Of course, this factor has a negative impact.”

Nevertheless, Peskov continued, “dialogue between Russia and the United States is necessary in any case.” “It is needed not only in the interests of our two countries, but also in the interests of the whole world. One way or another, sooner or later we will have to talk about the issues of strategic stability, security and so on, in other words, those issues that only we can and should discuss,” he stated.

This is how the Kremlin spokesman answered to a question about whether Putin sees the need to meet with Biden, and whether he is in the mood to talk after the insults to his address. Earlier, the US president himself said he did not rule out the possibility of a new face-to-face meeting with the Russian president, but said the prospect of organizing potential talks depends on their agenda.

Biden’s statements

Recently, Biden has repeatedly made personal attacks and insults to his Russian counterpart. On March 26, during his visit to Warsaw, he claimed that “the man [Putin] cannot remain at power.” The White House later assured that the US leader was not calling for regime change in Russia. For his part, Peskov pointed out that it was not the American president who would decide who would be in power in Russia.

A number of Western politicians, including French President Emmanuel Macron, essentially distanced themselves from Biden’s remarks. The European Commission has proclaimed that the EU is not seeking to bring about a change in Russia’s leadership. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, commenting on the US president’s words, called for avoiding actions and rhetoric around Ukraine that lead to escalation. The British Times newspaper suggested that these remarks by the American leader may be the biggest gaffe he has made in more than half a century of his political career./Tass