Live on US channels, Joe Biden said that Vladimir “Putin will be an outcast on the international stage.” That “all over the world, from Asia to South America and Europe”, the vast majority oppose Putin. That he, Biden, would not “talk to Putin”.
Of the questions, one was about China’s seeking help to “isolate Russia.” Biden responded that he was not “prepared to comment.” Another was about India. Biden: “We’re in consultation. We haven’t fully resolved it.”
In China, Guancha, Global Times and the Xinhua agency highlighted the phone call between the Chinese and Russian foreign ministers, in which the former once again defended sovereignty and stated that he understood Putin’s “security concerns”.
His spokeswoman was more direct, telling a news conference that “when it comes to respect for sovereignty, the US is not in a position to reprimand China”, citing “interference” in Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Taiwan and the bombing of embassy in Belgrade. “NATO still owes a blood debt to the Chinese people.”
In India, highlighted by Dainik Jagran, Hindu and Times of India (above), Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Putin. He said that “all sides” should “return to the path of diplomacy” and “reiterated his long-held conviction that differences between Russia and NATO can only be resolved through sincere dialogue.”
In the background, on New Delhi’s NDTV channel, the Ukrainian ambassador declared himself “deeply dissatisfied with the Indian position”.
French President Emmanuel Macron also called Putin, called for an end to the conflict and, according to Russians Argumenty i Fakty and Moskovskij Komsomolets, heard a “comprehensive explanation of the reasons and circumstances for the special military operation”.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi also called Putin, but to criticize NATO, which he sees as the “root” of the war, according to reports by Iranian PressTV and Qatari Al Jazeera.
As for South America, the New York Times itself pointed out that Jair Bolsonaro “walks a fine line in his response to the attacks”. That AMLO’s Mexico rejected use of force, “but did not name Russia”. And that Alberto Fernández’s Argentina, unexpectedly, “issued its strongest rejection of the use of armed force”.
IRANIAN OIL WAVE
Amid the soaring prices of gas and oil, the French Le Monde gave the call “The nuclear deal with Iran is about to be saved”. The US gave in, and all that remains is for the Iranian government to confirm.
Bloomberg, reproduced above, with an image of a rig in the Persian Gulf, projects that an “Iranian oil wave could flood Asia if agreement is reached”.
