Kremlin: Putin will not congratulate Biden on U.S. Independence Day
Russian President Vladimir Putin will not congratulate American President Joe Biden on the U.S. Independence Day, said Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov during a press briefing.
"No, there will be no congratulatory letter this year. This is because this year has been the culmination of an unfriendly policy towards our country on the part of the United States. Therefore, in these conditions, it can hardly be considered expedient to send such a congratulatory message," Putin's press secretary said.
Peskov also touched upon the topic of the Russian-Ukrainian war, noting that everything is going as planned at the beginning of a full-scale invasion of the neighboring country.
"It is progressing in accordance with existing plans and adjustments," the Kremlin spokesman assured, without specifying what kind of "adjustments" had been made to the original plan.
"As for the issues of further tactical steps, this is with the Ministry of Defense. I can only say: the operation is going according to plan," Peskov added, refusing to tell reporters whether Russian troops will intensify their actions in the Donetsk and Kharkiv directions.
Also, the Kremlin’s representative expressed hope that the issue with the restrictions on goods transit to Kaliningrad will be resolved, although he said that in parallel the Kremlin is working on "alternative scenarios if the blockade continues."
Unlike Putin, the Belarusian dictator, Alexander Lukashenko, was not so principled and congratulated the people of the United States of America on Independence Day on behalf of Belarusians and on his own behalf.
"On this festive day, I wish all Americans simple things that are understandable to everyone and unite all people regardless of the level of well-being and skin color: good health, peace, stability and faith in a better future, which is possible only if we strive for it together," the ruler of Belarus said.
Lukashenko proposed "to forget the disagreements that divide families, societies, entire continents, and to unite efforts in order to find a way out of today's very alarming and unsafe situation."
Earlier, Lukashenko said that he determined the role of Belarus in the Ukrainian-Russian war "long time ago“ and stressed that the Russian Federation and Belarus have created a "single grouping of armed forces" awhile ago.