A Russian state TV host called on the US to remove President Joe Biden and reinstate former President Donald Trump in an off-script remark days after Biden’s own call for regime change against Vladimir Putin.
On Tuesday, TV host of Russia’s 60 Minutes show Evgeny Popov urged America to quickly replace Biden with Trump, whom he described as the Russian state’s “partner”.
“It is time that we, our people, called on the people of the United States to make early regime change in the United States and once again help our partner Trump become president,” Popov said.
His statement comes after Biden condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in an impassioned speech in Poland on Saturday, in which he deviated from the script and made his own shocking declaration for Russians to oust Putin.
“For God’s sake, this man can’t stay in power,” Biden said.
Russia’s 60 Minutes host Evgeny Popov (center) urged Americans to quickly replace President Joe Biden with former President Donald Trump
Popov’s statement echoes Biden’s statement on Saturday calling on the Russians to remove Vladimir Putin from power over the invasion of the Kremlin in Ukraine
Popov had described Trump (right) as a “partner” of the Russian state. Trump meets with Putin at a G-20 summit in Japan in June 2019
On Saturday, Biden (pictured) went off script and issued a shocking statement saying Putin should not remain in power
Biden then did a U-turn, telling reporters “no” the next day when asked whether or not he wanted Putin removed from power.
White House officials went into damage control, saying in a statement: “The President’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region. He didn’t talk about Putin’s power in Russia or regime change.’
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was quick to contradict his president’s comments, saying his boss was likely referring to Putin’s influence outside his country – including Moscow’s bloody and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, which has now spanned over a month.
“I think the President, the White House, indicated last night that President Putin simply cannot be authorized to wage war or engage in aggression against Ukraine or anyone,” Blinken said, according to multiple reports.
French President Emmanuel Macron also warned of an escalation “in words and deeds” on Sunday after Biden’s speech.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quick to condemn Biden, saying, “It’s not up to the US President and it’s not up to Americans to decide who stays in power in Russia.”
During his speech, Biden also took a cue from Arnold Schwarzenegger — who released a video message to Russians that went viral — and spoke directly to the Russian people.
‘I am telling you the truth. This war is not worthy of you, the Russian people,” he said. “Putin can and must end this war. The American people will stand with you and with the brave citizens of Ukraine who want peace.’
And he warned that Putin’s aggression could bring “decades of war” to Europe.
“It is nothing short of a direct challenge to the order that has been established since World War II, and a return to decades of wars ravaging Europe before the international, rules-based order was established, looms. We can’t go back to that,” Biden said.
Trump hasn’t been shy about participating in the recent back-and-forth between the White House and the Kremlin after urging Putin on Tuesday to turn over any documents he may have about Hunter Biden’s alleged dealings with Russian oligarchs.
Trump (above) hasn’t been shy about joining in the recent back-and-forth between the White House and the Kremlin after he urged Putin to turn over any documents he may have regarding Hunter Biden’s alleged dealings with Russian oligarchs
A destroyed tank is seen near a damaged building in Mariupol on Saturday as civilians are evacuated along humanitarian corridors from the Ukrainian city under the control of the Russian military and pro-Russian separatists
The ex-president said he was particularly interested in an alleged $3.5 million payment from the widow of the former Moscow mayor to a company co-founded by Hunter Biden, according to an excerpt of a new interview with Just The News.
“Why did the Moscow Mayor’s wife give the Bidens – both of them – $3.5 million? That’s a lot of money,” Trump said in a 30-second clip on the Voice of America program.
“She gave him $3.5 million. So now I would think that Putin knows the answer to that. I think he should release it. I think we should know that answer.’
Trump was referring to a 2020 report by Senate Republicans that claimed Yelena Baturina, one of Russia’s billionaire oligarchs, gave the hefty sum to a company called Rosemont Seneca Thorton under an “advisory agreement.”
Earlier this month, Trump accused Biden of a “conflict of interest” after the president was sanctioned by Moscow along with a host of other US officials, as well as his son Hunter and Hillary Clinton.
Although Trump has garnered support for his digs at Biden, he has also been criticized for allegedly being lenient towards Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, which the former president touted as a “brilliant” move by Putin.
“He took over a country for $2 in sanctions, I’d say that’s pretty smart,” Trump said of Putin last month in his resort town of Mar-a-Lago.
“He takes over a country — a huge, huge place, a great piece of land with lots of people — and he just goes in. That would never have happened and I know him very well.”