WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden received his first call Tuesday with Vladimir Putin, the White House and the Kremlin said. U.S. officials say Biden expressed concern over the arrest of opposition figure Alexei Navalny as he pressured Russian president over his nation’s involvement in a massive cyberespionage campaign and rewards for U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
On a positive note, the two presidents agreed that their teams should work urgently to complete an extension of New START, the latest arms control treaty between the United States and Russia, before it expires next month.
“In the coming days, the parties will complete the necessary procedures to ensure further functioning” of the pact, the Kremlin said in the reading of the call.
Biden has tried to establish a break with the warm rhetoric often putin by his predecessor, Donald Trump. But the new president also wants to preserve the place for diplomacy.
Unlike his immediate predecessors, Biden has not held out hope of a “re-establishment” of relations with Russia, but has indicated that he wants to manage the differences with the former Cold War enemy without necessarily resolving them or improve ties. And, with an intense national agenda and decisions approaching Iran and China, it is not looking for a direct confrontation with Russia.
Moscow contacted him last week to request the call, according to U.S. officials, who were familiar with the call but were not allowed to speak about it publicly. Biden agreed, but wanted to first prepare with his staff and talk to European allies, including the leaders of Britain, France and Germany.
On Tuesday, before his call with Putin, Biden spoke with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, pledging the U.S. commitment to the decades-old alliance founded as a bulwark against Russian aggression.
Biden told Putin that his administration was assessing the SolarWinds breach and reports that Russia offered rewards to the Taliban for killing American troops in Afghanistan. Biden said the United States is willing to defend itself and will take steps, which could include additional sanctions, to ensure Moscow does not act with impunity, according to administration officials.
The Kremlin reading did not address the most contentious issues between countries, although he said leaders also discussed other “acute issues on the bilateral and international agenda.” He described the talk as “frank and entrepreneurial”, often a diplomatic way of referring to tense discussions. He also said Putin congratulated Biden on being president and “noted that the normalization of ties between Russia and the United States would serve the interests of both countries.”
Topics he said were discussed included the coronavirus pandemic, the Iran-Ukraine nuclear deal, and issues related to trade and the economy.
The call came when Putin considered the aftermath of the pro-Navalny protests that took place in more than 100 Russian cities over the weekend. Biden’s team has already reacted strongly to the crackdown on protests, in which more than 3,700 people were detained across Russia, including more than 1,400 in Moscow. More protests are planned for next weekend.
Navalny, an anti-corruption advocate and Putin’s best-known critic, was arrested Jan. 17 on his way back to Russia from Germany, where he had spent nearly five months recovering from nervous breakdown. blame the Kremlin. Biden has previously condemned the use of chemical weapons.
Russian authorities deny the allegations.
Trump seemed to seek Putin’s approval, often questioning Russian interference in the 2016 election, even when he ran alongside Putin at his 2018 summit in Helsinki. He also downplayed Russia’s involvement in the piracy of federal government agencies last year and the accusations that Russia offered the Taliban rewards.
Despite this conciliatory approach, the Trump administration took a hard line against Moscow, imposing sanctions on the country, Russian companies, and business leaders on issues ranging from Ukraine to power supplies and attacks on dissidents.
Biden, in his call with Putin, abruptly broke with Trump by stating that he knew Russia was trying to interfere in both the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Biden told reporters Monday that he hoped the United States and Russia could cooperate in areas where both see benefits.
“I find that we can both operate in the mutual interest of our countries as a new START agreement and make it clear to Russia that we are very concerned about their behavior, whether it’s Navalny or SolarWinds or reports of rewards in any of the Americans in Afghanistan, ”Biden said.
Biden’s approach has received the approval of some former U.S. diplomats who have dealt with Russia and look forward to seeing how Biden’s team outlines, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his candidate. to be No. 3 in the State Department, Victoria Nuland. the contours of Russian politics.
Nuland, who held Europe’s portfolio in the State Department during President Barack Obama’s second term, is insulted by Putin and his aides, in particular, for his support of pro-Western politicians in Ukraine. She and Sullivan are said to share views on how to deal with Moscow, taking a hard line on Russia’s human rights and intentions in Eastern and Central Europe, while keeping an open channel in the Kremlin on other issues.
But his initial position is complicated, they say, especially because of Putin’s experience in dealing with Trump, who often downplays his own administration’s falconry stance on Russia trying to welcome the Russian leader. Trump was also ill-prepared for calls from foreign leaders, ignoring staff warnings, limiting those who could hear them, and especially after calls with Putin, telling very few aides what was discussed.
“It’s difficult, but it’s doable,” said Daniel Fried, the U.S. ambassador to Poland and deputy secretary of state for European affairs in the George W. Bush administration. “They’ll have to find out on the fly, but it’s important to chase the new START without hesitation and back Navalny’s arrest and other no-fault issues.”
“They have to do both and not let Putin tell them he won’t accept New START unless they leave Navalny, SolarWinds or Afghanistan,” said Fried, who is now on the Atlantic Council. “You have to step back and you can’t let Putin set the conditions.”
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Associated Press writer Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.