People in the Kremlin are overjoyed by Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw from the US presidential race. A top politician under Vladimir Putin accuses him of “walking away” when he realised he wasn’t going to win.
During a visit to Cuba, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin claimed that Biden “has caused problems all over the world and in his own country.”
The former Putin adviser argued that Biden should be held accountable “for the war unleashed in Ukraine, the destruction of the economies of European states and the sanctions policy against Russia and other countries.”
He added that the US leader, who was running against Republican candidate Donald Trump, made the decision after “seeing that he was not going to be elected” and is now “running away without waiting for the elections.”
While many world leaders have praised the 81-year-old for his record and decades as a civil servant, Volodin is among Putin’s allies who have responded to the news with criticism and sarcastic remarks.
US President Joe Biden speaks with Republican candidate Donald Trump during a presidential debate
Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin (right with Vladimir Putin) claimed that Biden ‘has caused problems all over the world’
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on Telegram: “Joseph Biden said he is leaving the presidential race. But he didn’t say where exactly.”
She added that “the next step” after Biden’s announcement “should be an investigation into the collaboration between the American media and political circles that concealed the true state of affairs about his mental state, manipulated public opinion and played into the hands of one political party.”
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed in a statement that the Russian president is focused on the war and not on the US elections.
However, he added that “the elections are not until four months from now, we have to pay close attention and see what happens after that.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Biden for his “leadership and support” after the US president recently announced a $225 million arms package for his beleaguered country.
This included a Patriot system to strengthen air defenses against deadly Russian air attacks.
Zelensky wrote in an article on X: ‘Ukraine is grateful to President Biden for his unwavering support for Ukraine’s struggle for freedom. This support, together with strong bipartisan support in the United States, is and remains crucial.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Biden for his ‘leadership and support’
“There have been many strong decisions made over the past few years, and they will be remembered as bold steps taken by President Biden in response to challenging times. And we respect today’s difficult but strong decision.”
For leading Democrats, the trigger for Biden’s downfall was the apparent loss during last month’s televised election debate.
Pro-Kremlin media and commentators mock Washington over president’s performancecausing him to stumble over his words and lose the thread of his thoughts.
The Kremlin itself also seemed to downplay the election campaign. According to Putin’s spokesman, the dictator was too busy to watch the debate.
Putin rarely comments on US elections and has previously pledged to ‘work with any American leader’
“I don’t think you would expect the president of Russia to set an alarm clock, wake up in the morning and watch a debate in the United States,” his spokesman Peskov said. “After all, this is not an event on our agenda.”
Putin rarely comments on US elections and has previously promised to “work with any American leader.”
In February, he said Biden was a better candidate for Russia because he is “a more experienced, predictable politician of the old school.”
But in May, he launched a fierce critique of the US justice and political systems after Trump was convicted of a crime, saying they were being used by enemies of the former president to harm his re-election chances.