Politics

Biden Accuses Trump of 'Modern-Day Appeasement' Towards Putin

MAY 7 2025·Updated MAY 8 2025

Story

Above: U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and former President Joe Biden (R) during the inauguration ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 20, 2025. Image credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Contributor via Getty Images

The Facts

Former U.S. President Joe Biden this week accused his successor of "modern-day appeasement" towards Russian President Vladimir Putin by pressuring Ukraine to give up territory to secure a peace deal.
BBC News
Guardian
BBC News
In his first interview since leaving office in January, given to the BBC and broadcast on Wednesday, Biden's reference to the policy of former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain towards Adolf Hitler in the 1930s came as Allied nations prepare to mark the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (V.E.) Day this week.
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Guardian
The Telegraph
Speaking of Putin, Biden said: "I just don't understand how people think that if we allow a dictator, a thug, to decide he's going to take significant portions of land that aren't his, that that's going to satisfy him. I don't quite understand."
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Independent
Reuters
Biden also defended his own record towards Ukraine after being challenged on whether the U.S. gave enough support for it to win the war, not just resist the Russian invasion. "We gave them everything they needed to provide for their independence, and we were prepared to respond, more aggressively, if Putin moved again," he said.
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Guardian
The Kyiv Independent
Elsewhere in the interview, Biden further defended his decision not to drop out of the presidential race earlier. "Things moved so quickly that it made it difficult to walk away. And it was a hard decision. I think it was the right decision. I think that… it was just a difficult decision."
BBC News
Independent
He also criticized President Donald Trump for remarks in which he suggested the U.S. could take back the Panama Canal, seize Greenland and make Canada the 51st state. "What the hell's going on here? What president ever talks like that? That's not who we are," he said. "We're about freedom, democracy, opportunity, not about confiscation."
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Independent

Sources Split

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The Spin

Anti-Trump narrative

Biden's remarks are a reflection of how many people are feeling: that Trump is appeasing Putin by pressuring Ukraine to cede its territory. This will not stop Putin from further aggression. Biden also rightly called out Trump's behavior that's unbefitting of a president of the United States.

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Pro-Trump narrative

It's only through Biden's inept leadership that the war in Ukraine started in the first place. Worse, rather than ever trying to resolve the conflict, he kept escalating the situation, only leading to the further destruction and death.