USA: Joe Biden pushes for a summit with Vladimir Putin on a trip to Europe in June

So far, Putin has kept the decision on such a high-level meeting open. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused the United States of “taking hostile steps” on state television on Thursday. That is why it is difficult to accept a potential summit.

Biden had already proposed a summit with Putin in a mid-April phone call. According to the White House, the aim of the summer meeting in a third European country should be “to discuss the full range of issues facing the United States and Russia.” Several countries in the European Union have already offered to host.

Countries imposed sanctions on each other

Shortly after Biden proposed the summit, the United States expelled ten Russian diplomats and imposed new sanctions for pirate attacks attributed to Moscow and interference in the US elections. Russia responded by expelling ten American diplomats and imposing sanctions on the United States. In addition, the government in Moscow issued entry bans to senior US government officials.

In a previous interview, the US president answered yes to the question of whether he considered Kremlin President Vladimir Putin a “murderer.” Biden has repeatedly emphasized that he does not want an escalation with Russia, but that Moscow’s actions have consequences. Biden, who has been in office since Jan.20, had already announced a tougher course toward Russia during the election campaign.

His first trip abroad will take the American president to attend the G7 summit (June 11-13) in Great Britain and the NATO summit (June 14) in Belgium. A high-level meeting with the European Union is also scheduled to take place in Brussels. With the trip, Biden wants to emphasize his goal of reviving transatlantic relations and cooperation with the Allies.