As Russian leader Vladimir Putin moves troops into Ukrainian territory and threatens a wider invasion of the country, President Joe Biden is responding with words of condemnation, economic sanctions and efforts to rally U.S. allies to stand up to Moscow.
But one option Biden remains unwilling to use is sending American troops to fight Russian forces in Ukraine.
“Strong presidents never take options off the table, and we cannot be surprised if Putin now doubts whether we really care what he does to Ukraine,” GOP Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi wrote in the National Review last week.
Biden is so dead set on avoiding the possibility of a U.S.-Russian military encounter that he pulled out of Ukraine scores of U.S. troops who had been training that country’s fighters. He also recently warned that he won’t send U.S. troops to evacuate Americans stuck in Ukraine, citing the risk of a clash.
“That’s a world war when Americans and Russia start shooting at one another,” Biden explained in an interview that aired earlier this month with NBC News’ Lester Holt. “We’re in a very different world than we’ve ever been.”
But Biden’s position also raises the question: Would Putin have made different calculations in Ukraine this week if Biden had raised the possibility he would deploy American troops? Or should Biden have stayed mum about what he’d do — adopting a strategically ambiguous position that could have deterred Putin?
Critics of Biden’s stance say it’s impossible to assess exactly what alternative history might have transpired had Biden kept alive the military option. Putin has, after all, had a presence inside Ukraine since 2014, when he first invaded, and he appears intent on taking more of the country.
But the Russian leader’s takeaway from Biden’s unwillingness to deploy troops is that he can get away with a lot, some critics argue, and China is learning the same as it weighs how to deal with Taiwan.
“The message we’re sending Russia by rushing U.S. troops out of [Ukraine and] closing the embassy is that we’re afraid of getting into a conflict with any Russians,” said Kori Schake, director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, who criticized Biden’s stance in a searing op-ed earlier this month.
Add to Biden’s reticence on Ukraine his withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, and China’s communist leaders will believe “that we’re not willing to fight for anything,” Schake said in an interview.
Whether Trump, Biden or someone else is in charge in Washington in 2025, one person with a long-term view is Putin, who plans to stay in power for many more years.
But one option Biden remains unwilling to use is sending American troops to fight Russian forces in Ukraine.
“Strong presidents never take options off the table, and we cannot be surprised if Putin now doubts whether we really care what he does to Ukraine,” GOP Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi wrote in the National Review last week.
Biden is so dead set on avoiding the possibility of a U.S.-Russian military encounter that he pulled out of Ukraine scores of U.S. troops who had been training that country’s fighters. He also recently warned that he won’t send U.S. troops to evacuate Americans stuck in Ukraine, citing the risk of a clash.
“That’s a world war when Americans and Russia start shooting at one another,” Biden explained in an interview that aired earlier this month with NBC News’ Lester Holt. “We’re in a very different world than we’ve ever been.”
But Biden’s position also raises the question: Would Putin have made different calculations in Ukraine this week if Biden had raised the possibility he would deploy American troops? Or should Biden have stayed mum about what he’d do — adopting a strategically ambiguous position that could have deterred Putin?
Critics of Biden’s stance say it’s impossible to assess exactly what alternative history might have transpired had Biden kept alive the military option. Putin has, after all, had a presence inside Ukraine since 2014, when he first invaded, and he appears intent on taking more of the country.
But the Russian leader’s takeaway from Biden’s unwillingness to deploy troops is that he can get away with a lot, some critics argue, and China is learning the same as it weighs how to deal with Taiwan.
“The message we’re sending Russia by rushing U.S. troops out of [Ukraine and] closing the embassy is that we’re afraid of getting into a conflict with any Russians,” said Kori Schake, director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, who criticized Biden’s stance in a searing op-ed earlier this month.
Add to Biden’s reticence on Ukraine his withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, and China’s communist leaders will believe “that we’re not willing to fight for anything,” Schake said in an interview.
Whether Trump, Biden or someone else is in charge in Washington in 2025, one person with a long-term view is Putin, who plans to stay in power for many more years.