Biden Taunts Putin for Thinking He’d Conquer Kyiv ‘In a Matter of Days,’ Brags About Visiting There Himself
President Joe Biden delivered one of his final speeches from the State Department Monday as he began the last week of his administration, addressing foreign policy topics including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Our adversaries are weaker than they were when we came into this job four years ago — just consider Russia,” said Biden.
“When Putin invaded Ukraine, he thought he’d conquer Kyiv in a matter of days. The truth is, since that war began, I’m the only one that’s stood in the center of Kyiv, not him. Putin never has!” the president continued as the audience clapped.
“It was a long train ride,” Biden joked, “but I’m the only commander-in-chief to visit a war zone not controlled by U.S. forces.”
He went on to tout how America had helped Ukraine hold off Russian forces. “And now, nearly three years later, Putin has failed to achieve any of his strategic objectives,” said Biden, pointing out how Putin had “failed thus far to subjugate Ukraine, failed to break the unity of NATO, and failed to make large territorial gains.”
The U.S. had helped rally fifteen countries to support Ukraine, not just in Europe, but also in Asia, along with providing air interceptors and “massive numbers of munitions” and imposing “relentless, unprecedented sanctions” that left Russia “struggling to replace what they were losing on the battlefield in terms of military equipment and fighters.” Russia’s currency, the ruble, was also under “enormous pressure,” added Biden.
The president said that when Russia invaded Ukraine, he felt that he had “two jobs”: “one, to rally the world to defend Ukraine, and the other is to avoid war between two nuclear powers.”
“We did both those things,” said Biden. “Today, Ukraine is still a free, independent country, with the potential — potential — for a bright future. And we laid the foundation for the next administration, so they can protect the bright future of the Ukrainian people.”
Watch the clip above via CNN.
