President Joe Biden recently snapped at a reporter when he was asked a question at a meeting with other foreign leaders, such as British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. As a press member asked Biden an impromptu question about the geopolitical situation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he fired back at the reporter, instructing him to be silent.
“Mr. President, what do you say to Vladimir Putin’s threat of war?” Biden was asked before cutting off the reporter. The president asserted, “I say you be quiet until I speak, okay?” The reporter, undeterred, asked a second time, “What do you say to Vladimir Putin’s threat of war, sir, it’s a serious threat.” Biden added, “You gotta be quiet, I’m going to make a statement, okay.”
“Alright, anyway,” Biden continued, commencing the summit with Prime Minister Starmer. “Mr. Prime Minister welcome, welcome back to the White House.” Reports suggest that President Biden downplayed the threats made by Vladimir Putin during the meeting. “I do not think much about Vladimir Putin,” Biden told those in attendance at the foreign policy summit.
The British prime minister seemed to indicate that the discussion went well covered a lot of ground regarding pressing global issues. “Well, we’ve had a long and productive discussion on a number of problems, including Ukraine, as you’d expect, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific, talking strategically about tactical decisions,” Starmer said after the Summit.
A summary of the event shared by the White House stated, “President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. met today with Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom at the White House. The leaders had an in-depth discussion on a range of foreign policy issues of mutual interest. They reaffirmed their unwavering support for Ukraine as it continues to defend against Russia’s aggression.”
Commenting on concerns in the geopolitical landscape, the summary explained, “They expressed deep concern about Iran and North Korea’s provision of lethal weapons to Russia and the People’s Republic of China’s support to Russia’s defense industrial base. They reiterated their ironclad commitment to Israel’s security, the urgent need for a ceasefire deal that will free the hostages and enable increased relief in Gaza, and the need for Israel to do more to protect civilians and address the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.”
The summit also addressed tensions that were mounting at the time with Iran in light of the Houthi attacks on commercial shipping. “They also condemned Iran-backed Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. They discussed U.S.-UK cooperation on clean energy and advanced technologies, on AUKUS, as well as opportunities to deepen our strong U.S.-UK economic ties. President Biden underscored his support for the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and its role in maintaining peace and stability in Northern Ireland,” the White House statement read.
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Watch Biden snap at the reporter who interjected as Biden was attempting to begin the meeting below:
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.