President Joe Biden delivered an 11-minute speech at the White House on Tuesday amid increasing concerns that Russia may invade Ukraine.
“The United States has put on the table concrete ideas to establish the security environment in Europe,” he said. “Proposing new arms control measures, new transparency measures, news strategic stability measures. We’re willing to make practical result-oriented steps that can advance our common security.”
Biden noted Russia has claimed that it has moved some soldiers away from its border with Ukraine. “That would be good, but we have not yet verified that,” he said.
The president also stated he is prepared “to engage in diplomacy with Russia,” but that the U.S. would not “sacrifice basic principles.” He also said that if Russia invades, Nord Stream 2 – the pipeline set to deliver natural gas from Russia to Germany – “will not happen.”
Following Biden’s address, Washington Post columnist and Fox News contributor Marc Thiessen appeared on The Story with Martha MacCallum to offer his reaction.
“All of these tanks and troops may be moving around a tiny bit today, but not really retreating in any significant way,” said MacCallum. “Is [Putin] going to get what he wants here?”