In his speech in Warsaw today, Joe Biden said of Vladimir Putin: ‘For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power.’ This comes after Biden condemned Putin as a war criminal and ‘a butcher’. So, what did Biden mean by this? At first blush, it looks like a call for either a palace coup or a popular uprising in Russia – the two ways that Putin could be ousted from power. But the White House has been quick to downplay the remark, telling US reporters: ‘The President’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbours or the region. He was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia, or regime change.’
Biden, who has done an effective job at rallying the US’s European and Asian allies in this crisis, would have been better off not saying Putin cannot remain in power.
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