As early as 1947, nuclear physicists at the University of Chicago invented the so-called Doomsday Clock, which symbolically shows how much time is left until the relative end of the world. Depending on the level of a nuclear disaster threat, the minute hand of this clock, which is traditionally only a few sections before midnight, is shifted one minute forward or backward. Now, after US President Joe Biden confirmed that he considers Russian President Vladimir Putin to be a killer, the clock hand can be moved one step closer to midnight.
It is debatable to what extent Biden's answer to the highly provocative question of ABC News' George Stephanopoulos was offensive to Putin, but it must be admitted that it was unequivocal. Biden's "Mhm, I do" was said with a facial expression and a tone that allows any further interpretations on the meaning only to those who truly want to find them. Only they could consider that "I do" means something different from simply "yes".
The question remains as to why Biden did so, because he could have answered this question of Stephanopoulos diplomatically evasively, as any politician of this level knows how to do. After all, this is the daily work of a modern politician - not to answer at all or to answer as evasively as possible for any tough questions. Biden, after thinking for a moment, answered the interviewer's question unequivocally in the affirmative. So that's exactly what he wanted to say.
I recently wrote that Putin pays little attention to words (in Latvian). He places much more importance on actions. Biden's extension of the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty with no discussions and the easing of sanctions policy against German companies participating in the Nordstream-2 project suggested that Biden was the same as Barack Obama - adamant in words, tolerant in deeds. It is possible that this time, too, Biden just wanted to verbally demonstrate his strong stance by calling things by their proper names, but this statement can also have much more serious consequences.
When we say that for Putin words are of little concern, it is to be understood that he is unconcerned with words which he does not understand; which in his perception mean nothing; which, to Putin's ears, are nothing more than the bubbling of a stream: democracy, human rights, freedom, human life, national interests and similar abstractions. Even if someone calls him a bad name it is like water off a duck's back, but this time it is not some abstract cursing. Killer is a very strong word.
True, Russian propaganda is already trying to turn this particular accusation into an abstraction, shifting the focus to the general plan - say, then the president of any country, especially a great power, can be called a murderer. The only problem is that the leaders of other countries (including the United States and even China) are not only not called killers by the leaders of other countries, but are also not considered killers. However, the Russian president is seen as such, and Biden said it out loud.
Why would this Biden's "Mhm, I do" have serious consequences? Precisely because it is true. In other countries, opponents of the regime are not killed with unwritten sanctions of the government. If a person has a classic nose and someone says, oh, his nose is so crooked, then it does not worry him much. However, if a person really has an ugly nose, and someone points to his defect, it hurts much more deeply. That's how it is in this case. The fact that Biden has dared (albeit indirectly) to call Putin a killer is likely to be perceived by the latter as a personal insult.
Given that Putin's regime was built on the principles of Russian bandit brigades in the 1990s, one might think that the announcement by the leader of the "other brigade" that he considers Putin a killer could be seen almost as a compliment.
The problem, in this case, is that Putin does not want to see himself as the leader of a bandit brigade. He truly sees himself as the tsar of the great, great Russia, who, just like during the Concert of Europe (world order in the 19th century after the Congress of Vienna in 1815), maintains a geopolitical balance with other world rulers.
In this context, calling the head of another country a killer takes on a distinctly negative meaning, not a compliment. Putin is being told that you can consider yourself a great strategist and a global politician, but we don't consider you to be one. We consider you a common Leningrad bandit. Since Putin himself, in his deepest essence, very likely thinks similarly, this Biden's "I do" will not only be remembered, but according to his notions of good and evil, he will be forced to take revenge. In addition, take revenge so that all the other members of the brigade can see - Akela has not lost his touch and will not miss the prey. How Putin will prove it is another matter, but it is unlikely to be pleasant for the world.
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