President Joe Biden’s apparent call for Vladimir Putin’s exit reverberated instantly around the world, sparking an administration rush to course-correct — and risks scrambling US efforts to rally a united front on the Ukraine conflict.
Biden’s comment that the Russian president “cannot remain in power” — delivered in Warsaw at the close of three days of marathon diplomacy — was termed “a horrendous gaffe” by one Republican senator.
A senior US analyst said it could have the effect of lengthening the war.
And even France’s president warned such language could “escalate” a conflict the United States and its NATO allies have sought at all costs to contain, and undercut Western efforts to help suffering Ukrainians.
The remark came as Biden wound up a forceful speech on Saturday capping what had been a widely-praised European visit, aimed at presenting a determined front against Russia’s invasion.
His ad-libbed words — “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain power” — caught even US advisors off guard, representing a stark departure from oft-stated American policy.
The White House sprung immediately into action, clarifying within minutes that Biden was not advocating “regime change” in Russia.
But the comments by Biden — who hours earlier called Putin a “butcher” — drew predictable fury from Moscow, raised eyebrows in allied countries, and sent the president’s advisors into high gear to mollify the criticism.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in Jerusalem, joined in forcefully denying Biden was calling for Putin’s ouster.
Biden’s point, Blinken said, was that “Putin cannot be empowered to wage war, or engage in aggression against Ukraine, or anyone else.”
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