As it happened: Biden-Putin talks in Geneva

1. Joe Biden gave his assessment of his meeting with Vladimir Putin in Geneva
2. He said the talks were "positive" but warned the US would not tolerate interference in US democracy
3. Putin described his talks with the US president as "constructive"
4. He said the two sides agreed to return ambassadors after they were withdrawn earlier this year
5. A wide range of topics, from cyber-attacks to Ukraine were discussed, but little in the way of concrete deals
6. The meeting in Geneva was their first since Biden became president and was closely watched
7. All times are GMT (BST-1)

Thanks for tuning in today

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Thanks for tuning in to today’s live coverage of the Biden and Putin summit.

Here are some of the key points from today:

• The two leaders met in Geneva for their first summit together today. It came amid tensions on a number of issues, from alleged Russian cyber-attacks to Russia’s role in Ukraine
• Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to reporters in a news conference for about an hour
• He described the talks as “constructive”. He said that both sides had agreed to return ambassadors after they withdrawn earlier this year
• Biden said he told Putin that “human rights is always going to be on the table” and that his agenda is not against Russia but for the American people
• The US president became visibly frustrated by journalists' questions on how he could trust Putin without concrete action
• The two leaders released a joint statement - reflecting a tone of mutual cooperation

Sophie Williams, David Walker and Holly Honderich were our writing team today. The live page was edited by Paul Kirby, Toby Luckhurst and Jessica Murphy.

Biden takes pre-departure questions from 'negative' reporters

Gett

While the presidential plane waited to leave Geneva, President Biden took questions from reporters who were pressing him on what he had achieved during the Putin meeting.

"To be a journalist you have to have a negative world view, it seems," Biden said, chiding reporters for "never" asking a positive question.

Pushed over whether or not he accomplished anything, he responds "we will see".

Over the audible pleas of the president's team asking reporters to wrap up the questions, Biden continued to speak with them and defend his position with Putin.

Biden apologised for being "short" and a "wise guy" to reporters, who he then called "the brightest people in the country".

In pictures: Putin and past presidents

Vladimir Putin's two-decade reign as either president or prime minister of Russia has overlapped with the terms of five US presidents.

Here's a look back at his meetings with the four who came before Joe Biden: Bill Clinton, George Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

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Putin and Bill Clinton met in 2000 in New York City

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George W Bush meanwhile met with Putin at his vacation home in 2008

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Putin and President Obama shook hands for the cameras at a bilateral meeting at the UN headquarters in New York

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And President Donald Trump was photographed greeting Putin at the G20 Osaka Summit in 2019

Biden gives Putin sunglasses and a crystal bison

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Biden is known for his love of sunglasses

President Biden gave his Russian counterpart two gifts at the summit, according to the White House.

The first was a crystal sculpture of a US bison - "one of our nation's most majestic mammals and representative of strength, unity, resilience", a statement read.

He also gave President Putin a pair of sunglasses - "custom Aviators".

Biden is known for sporting Aviator sunglasses and has been photographed in the iconic shades many times.

Analysis: Old adversaries take tentative steps forward

Gordon Corera

Security correspondent, BBC News

AFP

A ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline in the US caused a surge of panic buying

At least in public, the two leaders set out familiar positions a world-apart.

The US says Russia has carried out aggressive cyber-espionage and sheltered criminals attacking US infrastructure with ransomware. But President Putin responded by suggesting most attacks in cyber-space come from America and elsewhere.

The US ambition for this meeting was to set out red lines and President Biden suggested he did just that - saying he listed 16 sectors of critical infrastructure that should be off-limits to attacks.

He said he’d also asked Putin how he would feel if Russia’s oil infrastructure was disrupted in the way that US fuel supplies were. This was no threat, merely to make a point, he appeared to be saying. But he also pointed out that Moscow knows the US has "significant" cyber capability - a clear warning.

Perhaps most significantly, Biden said the two sides agreed to set up a working group to develop specific understandings in cyber space and follow up on specific cases.

“Are they going to act? We are going to find out,” he said.

So rhetoric, warnings, denials and red lines were all there as expected - but also the possibility of a route to some kind of better understanding with the caution that this may or not work.

BreakingPutin and Biden release joint statement

In keeping with the two presidents' shared script of a "cooperative" meeting today, Putin and Biden have released a joint statement.

The two countries have proven they are able to make progress on shared goals "even in periods of tension", they said.

Russian-American cooperation helps reduce the threat of our own conflicts, and the threat of nuclear war, Putin and Biden said.

Biden wraps press conference

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After a mostly congenial tone, Biden's post-Putin press conference ended in a flurry of confusion.

Putting on his aviator sunglasses and making moves to leave, Biden continued to field questions as he walked off the stage.

Journalists probed Biden on what concrete action he had managed to elicit from Putin, pointing to the Russian leader's defensiveness on human rights questions earlier today.

Becoming visibly irritated, Biden walked back over to reporters, shaking his head at their questions.

Asked why Biden was confident that Putin would change his behaviour after false promises in the past, the US president retorted: "If you don’t understand that, you’re in the wrong business."

This isn't about trust - Biden

Earlier, there was confusion after President Biden nodded when a reporter asked if he trusted President Putin. The White House issued a denial, saying he was "clearly not responding to any one question, but nodding in acknowledgement to the press generally."

Asked at the news conference again about whether he could trust Putin, Biden said this was "not about trust".

"This is about self interest and verification of self interest," he said.

He said it was best to wait and see what happened, quoting an old saying. "The proof of the pudding is in the eating. We’re going to know shortly," he said.

Putin and Biden summit: Ongoing relations about 'mutual self-interest'

Putin's Capitol riots comments 'ridiculous' - Biden

When asked about restricted political freedoms in Russia, Putin pointed to the 6 January riots at the US Capitol, saying he didn't want that sort of chaos to happen in Russia.

Asked about those remarks at his own news conference, Joe Biden laughed and said it was a "ridiculous comparison".

On one hand, Biden said, you have "criminals" trying to take hold of the US Capitol. In Russia, you have people peacefully objecting, people who are not allowed to speak freely, he added.

Analysis: Putin pushes back on US criticism

Petr Kozlov

BBC Russia

EPA

First thing to point out is that the meeting lasted less than what was originally announced - less than five hours.

Second, just a few minutes after the end of the negotiations, Vladimir Putin came out to journalists and made a number of harsh statements - about the situation in Ukraine, the situation with the opposition in Russia, saying that the actions of the Russian authorities are no different from the actions of authorities in the US.

On the whole, Vladimir Putin's press conference was largely a repetition of what the Russian president has been saying for many years. The only new element was perhaps stating that some restoration of diplomatic bodies is possible, and that an exchange of citizens, convicted and imprisoned in Russia and the United States, respectively, is possible.

Biden to Putin: I'm not against Russia or anyone else

Biden to Putin: I'm not against Russia or anyone else

Biden: 'Devastating' consequences if Navalny dies

In his first question from reporters, President Biden is asked what he has done to prevent Russian election interference in the future.

"Whether I have stopped [election interference], Putin knows there will be consequences," Biden says.

Russia is "desperately trying to maintain its standing" as a world power, Biden says. Losing this status will be "the price they pay" for continued interference.

"They are not able to dictate what happens in the world," he says.

The same applies if Alexei Navalny dies. The consequences to Russia would be devastating, Biden says.

'I did what I came to do' - Biden

Finishing his opening remarks, Biden said it was "important to meet in person so there could be no mistake about" his intentions.

"I did what I came to do. Number one: identify areas of practical work our two countries can do to advance our mutual interests and also benefit the world. Two: Communicate directly, directly, that the US will respond to actions that impair our vital interests or those of our allies. And three, to clearly lay out our country’s priorities and our values so he heard it straight from me," he said.

"And I must tell you the tone of the entire meetings – I guess it was a total of four hours – was good, positive," he said. "There wasn’t any strident action taken."

Biden addresses cybersecurity

AFP

Biden, like Putin, addresses cybersecurity early on, saying that the US identified certain cyber infrastructures that are "off limits".

The US defined 16 such sites, defined as critical infrastructure.

Russia agreed in principle, Biden says. But "principle is one thing, it has to be backed up by practice".

Biden: I am for America, not against Russia

President Biden starts off with a firm but conciliatory tone.

"Where we have differences I want President Putin to understand why I say what I say and why I do what I do," Biden says.

"I told President Putin my agenda is not against Russia or anyone else, it’s for the American people," he said.

Human rights "are who we are" as Americans, Biden says. They will "always be on the table".

BreakingBiden takes the stage

After President Putin's nearly hour-long press conference, his American counterpart is up now.

President Joe Biden has taken the podium and is poised for questions.

Russian envoy to return to US by July

Vitaliy Shevchenko

BBC Monitoring

Russian ambassador Anatoly Antonov will return to Washington by July, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has said.

"Mr Antonov is waiting with his bags packed. Since the order has been received directly from the president, I think Mr Antonov will most definitely return to Washington by the end of this month," Ryabkov told journalists in Geneva, according to Interfax news agency.

He was speaking after President Vladimir Putin told a news conference after talks with US President Joe Biden that the ambassadors will be restored.

"We have agreed that this issue has been resolved," Putin said. "They are returning to the places of their permanent service. As to when exactly, tomorrow or the day after, that is a purely technical issue," he said.

Where's President Biden?

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We just heard from President Putin as he addressed journalists for nearly an hour.

President Joe Biden should be up next - journalists in Geneva say he could take the stage any moment.

What we learned from Putin press conference

Sarah Rainsford

BBC Moscow Correspondent

Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool/Reuters

Speaking on BBC News Channel.

Vladimir Putin was keen to spin a positive line on what happened. He was quite warm, in fact, in talking about Joe Biden.

One thing that stood out was how he said they had spoken eye to eye for almost two hours. It’s not every world leader you can do that with in such detailed talks, he said.

These were substantive, important, constructive talks, he stressed, and there were a few points at which they managed to move the relationship forward. They agreed to return ambassadors - without ambassadors it’s difficult to see how you can talk about any kind of diplomatic relationship. There is an agreement that the foreign ministers will look into the possible release and swap of high-profile prisoners, both in Russia and the US, and consultations will be held on strategic security.

Vladimir Putin was keen to underline several times that Russia was a nuclear power. It is an important country, yes its economy is far smaller than the US, but it is a nuclear power and does matter. And that’s why Joe Biden, in Putin’s eyes, came to talk to him.

Putin hits back at BBC correspondent's question

During the press conference, the BBC's Steve Rosenberg asked about Russian "unpredictability", which he said the west believes is "an inherent trait of the Russian policy."

"Are you ready to forego instability to improve?" he asked the Russian President.

It's clear that Putin was not a big fan of the question.

"You said the west believes that Russian policy is unpredictable, well let me reciprocate. The US withdrawal from the ABM treaty in 2002 was unpredictable. Why would they do that?

"Then disrupt and undermine the basis of the strategic stability, the INF treaty withdrawal in 2019, is that what you call stability, the open skies agreement withdrawal, well, is that what you call stability? There’s almost no legs to stand on," he said.