One Year Before the War, US and Russia Show Alliance... Biden: "Putin Made a Big Mistake" (Summary)

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] Ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin engaged in a public war of words, followed by a display of strong alliances. After visiting Kyiv, President Biden visited Poland to reaffirm security commitments to NATO allies, while President Putin signaled a close alignment with China by expressing anticipation for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia.

U.S. President Joe Biden (third from the left in the front row), NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and the leaders of the 'Bucharest Nine (B9)' countries [Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

◆Biden: "Defend Every Inch of NATO Territory"

On the 22nd (local time), President Biden attended the Bucharest Nine (B9) summit, a security consultation body among NATO's eastern front countries, at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Poland. He stated, "The United States' commitment to NATO is clear," adding, "We will literally defend every inch of NATO territory." Article 5 of the NATO collective defense treaty stipulates that an attack on one member is considered an attack on all, warranting assistance including the use of force.

This statement is interpreted as a reaffirmation of a firm defense commitment to NATO allies amid growing security concerns in Eastern Europe due to the prolonged Ukraine war. The B9, formed in response to Russia's forced annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, includes Poland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Slovakia. President Biden emphasized, "We are stronger than ever before," and also stressed, "We will continue to support Ukraine in defending its freedom."

The B9 meeting also served as a preparatory discussion ahead of the NATO summit scheduled for July 11-12 in Vilnius, Lithuania. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attended the meeting, stating, "We have witnessed Russia's aggression over the years, from Georgia in 2008, Crimea and Donbas in 2014, to last year's invasion of Ukraine," and added, "We cannot allow Russia to erode Europe's security. We must break the cycle of aggression."

President Biden concluded his European tour on this day and returned to the United States. His visit to Kyiv and speech in Poland were widely seen as focused on reaffirming "America's commitment to its allies."

Before attending the B9 summit, he criticized Russian President Putin's announcement to suspend participation in the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) with the United States as a "big mistake." This was the first official response following Putin's announcement the previous day, which blamed the U.S. for the Ukraine war and deteriorating bilateral relations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and Wang Yi, member of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China
[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆Putin Meets Wang Yi, Calls Xi "My Friend"

On the same day, President Putin also showed close alliance ties by meeting Wang Yi, China's top diplomat and a member of the Communist Party Central Political Bureau, who was visiting Russia. Putin referred to President Xi Jinping as "my friend." As President Biden visited Europe to strengthen NATO unity and declare support for Ukraine, Putin appeared to emphasize China's role in economically and diplomatically supporting Russia since the war began.

During Wang's visit to the Kremlin, Putin expressed, "We look forward to President Xi's visit to Russia." The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) had reported the day before that President Xi might visit Russia as early as April or May to meet with Putin. Putin added, "Our bilateral relations are steadily progressing as planned. Our cooperation is reaching new milestones." According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Wang Yi responded, "China-Russia relations are as stable as Mount Tai," and deepening this relationship is a priority for the Chinese government.

Notably, Wang Yi's statement that "The China-Russia strategic cooperative partnership has never targeted any third party, does not accept interference from any third party, and certainly does not tolerate threats from any third party" is widely interpreted as a direct message to the U.S. and the West. Documents released after the bilateral foreign ministers' meeting also included phrases such as "firm opposition to hegemonism and bloc confrontation." This is seen as criticism of the U.S.'s actions using alliances in the Indo-Pacific region and NATO to counter China and Russia.

The New York Times (NYT) reported, "Putin and Biden each ended the day by showcasing strong alliances," calling it "an effort to bolster alliances as the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine approaches." On the same day, Russia held an event titled "Glory to the Defenders of the Fatherland" at Luzhniki Stadium. Major foreign media reported that this event, held the day after Putin's state address, was intended to demonstrate Russian public support for the Ukraine war and President Putin.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, Russia, which declared suspension of New START the previous day, appeared to moderate its threat level by stating that the decision does not increase the risk of nuclear war. According to TASS news agency and others, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said during a conference call with reporters, "Russia considers it important to do everything, including arms control, to ensure security guarantees." When asked about conditions for returning to the treaty, he said, "Everything depends on the West," adding, "We are ready to return as soon as the West is prepared to consider our concerns."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.