I can’t begin to tell you how much I would like to be in “the room where it happened.”
I’m referring to the summit between President Biden and President Putin. It’s happening today in Geneva.
I just want to see the two of them together. How will they react to each other without reporters or cameras around? I’m guessing not everyone will be cordial.
There are some serious issues at hand. Russian influence in our elections. Hacking of our critical systems. Putin’s treatment of his political adversaries.
No topic is off the table, we are told.
I’m guessing President Biden will go toe-to-toe with President Putin. Fox News is reporting that Biden is primed and prepped for the summit.
It’s been a good world tour for him so far. How President Biden handles Putin will be what’s remembered about this trip.
A reporter asked Biden if he was ready? “I’m always ready,” he said. He’s spent his entire career preparing for this.
President Biden has pledged to lay down “red lines” with President Putin. It won’t be easy. Senator Rand Paul tells Fox, “It’s a difficult dance… diplomacy. But the main thing is we cannot cut ourselves off and we cannot refuse to have dialogue.”
So where is Putin on all this? He tells Russian State Television that he is ready for a direct dialogue.
Says Putin, “If after this meeting we create a mechanism of cooperation in these directions, it will be great. We would be able to say that the meeting wasn’t in vain.”
We know this… the two will not be holding a joint press conference when the summit is over. That means if it goes badly, they won’t have to fake it.
I do hope it goes well. We need a good relationship with Russia. We need a good relationship with China. There’s a lot we don’t agree on. There’s a lot we probably do.
We can’t isolate ourselves from the world. We never could. We certainly can’t now. I just hope President Biden is the one who can pull off, as Senator Rand Paul calls it, “the delicate dance.”