'Worthy opponent' - that's how President Biden assesses his counterpart Putin

The “portrait” of Mr. Putin was shared by President Biden during a press conference after the NATO summit in Brussels – one of many political meetings Mr. Biden attended during his first visit to Europe before he went to Geneva, Switzerland to meet the Russian President.

The Russia-US Summit between Mr. Putin and Mr. Biden in Geneva is scheduled for June 16. Source: Getty

“He’s a bright, tough guy, and I see him as… a worthy opponent,” Mr. Biden said when asked about the upcoming meeting with the Russian leader.

This description is completely different from what Mr. Biden said in an interview with ABC in March 2021.

Responding to CNN's question on June 14, just days before his meeting with President Putin, whether there had been a change in Mr. Biden's views, the US President paused for a moment, then replied that he did not think that would affect the upcoming meeting.

On the agenda for his summit with President Putin, Mr. Biden said he would tell his Russian counterpart that there are many areas where the U.S. and Russia can cooperate. However, Mr. Biden also pledged to set “red lines.”

“I share the same view with our allies and I will speak about that with Mr Putin. I do not seek conflict with Russia but we will respond if Russia continues its malicious actions and we will not fail to defend the transatlantic alliance. We stand for democratic values,” he said.

The meeting between Mr. Biden and Mr. Putin is scheduled to take place in Geneva on June 16. Both the US and Russia welcome the upcoming meeting as a positive step in seeking stability for bilateral relations that are at their “lowest level” since the Cold War./.

Mr. Putin affirmed that he is not afraid of the US in cyberspace.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with NBC that he is not afraid of US activities in cyberspace.