US President Joseph Biden's rude statements to Russian leader Vladimir Putin will inevitably have a negative impact on bilateral relations, and inviting Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov for consultations may not be Moscow's last reaction if no apology follows from the American side, Konstantin Kosachev, deputy speaker of the Federation Council, expressed this view on Thursday.
"Such statements are unacceptable under any circumstances and inevitably sharply aggravate our bilateral relations. The recall of the Russian ambassador from Washington to Moscow for consultations is a prompt, adequate and the only correct reaction in such a situation. I suspect it won't be the last one if no clarifications and apologies from the American side follow," Kosachev wrote on his Facebook page.
He recalled that the day before, in a TV interview, Biden, "with self-confidence worthy of a much better application," answered in the affirmative to a journalist's question whether he considers the Russian president a murderer (killer). "It's a watershed. Any expectation of a new US administration policy on Russia is written off with this boorish statement," said the senator.
The parliamentarian stressed that "this kind of assessment is in principle not allowed from a statesman of such rank."
At the same time, Kosachev noted that such a position was taken by the president of the country "which, according to expert estimates, drops a bomb somewhere on the planet every 12 minutes." "As a result, more than 500,000 people have been linked to American actions since 2001. Would you care to comment, Mr. Biden?" concluded the FC deputy speaker.
Biden's statements
Earlier, Biden said in an interview with ABC television that the Russian leadership will have to "pay the price" in connection with attempts to interfere in the US election attributed to Moscow.
The Russian embassy in Washington said in a statement posted on Facebook Wednesday that Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov is flying to the Russian capital on March 20 for consultations on bilateral relations. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova posted a comment on its website Wednesday stating that Antonov had been invited to Moscow for consultations to determine how to improve bilateral relations between the United States and Russia.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Federation Council
Based on materials from TASS