After their summit in Geneva on Wednesday, President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin said they have agreed to resume stalled nuclear talks and return their ambassadors to their foreign posts.
Currently, Russia’s ambassador to the U.S., Anatoly Antonov, and Washington’s ambassador to Moscow, John Sullivan, are not stationed at their posts. Both men were recalled this spring after Biden called Putin a killer and announced U.S. sanctions aimed at punishing Russia for a massive cyberattack last year on American government agencies.
Putin continued to deny the cyber attacks but said the talks were constructive.
“I think there was no hostility. Quite the contrary,” Putin said about his meeting with Biden. The Russian leader acknowledged that the two men did not share positions on many issues, but said he felt that “both of these sides showed a willingness to understand one another.”
On Wednesday, Putin and Biden reached an agreement that consultations on “strategic stability,” shorthand for nuclear arsenals, would resume between the two nations. Working-level officials, not the two presidents, will decide the composition, location, and frequency of these talks. Biden said that in practical terms this means “get our military and diplomatic experts together to gain control over new and dangerous weapons systems.”
