Moscow: President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia would prefer to see President Joe Biden win a second term, describing him as more experienced than Donald Trump.
Speaking in an interview with a correspondent of Russian state television on Wednesday, Putin declared that he would work with any US leader who is elected, but noted unequivocally that he would prefer Biden's victory when asked who would be a better choice from the point of view of Russia.
“Biden, he's more experienced, more predictable, he's a politician of the old formation,” Putin said. “But we will work with any US leader whom the American people trust.”
Asked about speculation on Biden's health issues, Putin responded “I'm not a doctor and I don't consider it proper to comment on that.”
Biden's team worked to alleviate Democratic concerns over alarms raised by a special counsel about Biden's age and memory. They came in a report determining that Biden would not be charged with any criminal activity for possessing classified documents after he left office.
Putin noted that the talk about Biden's health comes as “the election campaign is gaining speed in the US, and it's taking an increasingly sharp course.”
He added that allegations of Biden's health problems were also circulating at the time when they met in Switzerland in June 2021, adding that he witnessed the contrary and saw the US leader in good shape.
“They talked about him being incapacitated, but I saw nothing of the kind,” Putin said. “Yes, he was peeking at his papers, to be honest, I was peeking at mine, not a big deal." At the same time, Putin noted that he sees the Biden administration policy as wrong.
Russia-West ties have plunged to their lowest levels since the Cold War era after Putin sent his troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
“I believe that the position of the current administration is badly flawed and wrong, and I have told President Biden about that,” Putin said.
Putin has claimed that he has sent troops into Ukraine to protect Russian speakers there and to prevent a threat to Russia's security posed by Ukraine's bid to join NATO. Ukraine and its Western allies have denounced Moscow's action as an unprovoked act of aggression.
With PTI inputs