Former US president Joe Biden has said the Trump administration is appeasing Russia's President Vladimir Putin by pressuring Ukraine to give up territory as part of a potential peace deal to end Russia’s invasion.
In his first interview since leaving the White House in January, a frail-sounding Mr Biden, 82, told the BBC that Mr Putin believes Ukraine is part of Russia and that "anybody that thinks he's going to stop" if Ukrainian territory is conceded as part of a peace deal "is just foolish".
“It is modern-day appeasement,” Mr Biden said, a comparison to former British prime minister Neville Chamberlain’s 1930s policy of conceding to Nazi Germany’s territorial demands in an effort to avert the Second World War.
“I just don’t understand how people think that if we allow a dictator, a thug, to decide he’s going to take significant portions of land that aren’t his, that that’s going to satisfy him.”
He also voiced dismay over how the Trump administration has often sounded a friendlier tone towards Russia than Ukraine, including the Oval Office upbraiding President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was given by President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
“I found it beneath America, the way that took place,” he said.
Mr Trump’s failure to end the war in Ukraine within his first 100 days in office, as promised during his election campaign, has led to mounting frustration in the White House.
Mr Biden's interview came just over 100 days into Mr Trump's second term, during which the Republican leader has reshaped US domestic and foreign policy.
Mr Biden, who abandoned his re-election bid last year following a disastrous debate performance, said he was worried Europe would lose confidence in the “certainty of America and the leadership of America and the world”.
Mr Biden said it was a “difficult decision” to leave the presidential race four months from Election Day to allow former vice president Kamala Harris to challenge Mr Trump.
But, he added, making that move earlier, as some critics had suggested, “wouldn't have mattered”.
His interview also coincided with allied nations this week marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.
“I fear our allies around the world are going to begin to doubt whether we're going to stay where we've always been in the last 80 years,” Mr Biden said.
Army of the Dead
Director: Zack Snyder
Stars: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera
Three stars
ASHES FIXTURES
1st Test: Brisbane, Nov 23-27
2nd Test: Adelaide, Dec 2-6
3rd Test: Perth, Dec 14-18
4th Test: Melbourne, Dec 26-30
5th Test: Sydney, Jan 4-8
Tenet
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh
Rating: 5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Manchester United v Liverpool
Premier League, kick off 7.30pm (UAE)
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 290hp
Torque: 340Nm
Price: Dh155,800
On sale: now
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Sweet%20Tooth
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJim%20Mickle%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EChristian%20Convery%2C%20Nonso%20Anozie%2C%20Adeel%20Akhtar%2C%20Stefania%20LaVie%20Owen%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Fixtures
50-over match
UAE v Lancashire, starts at 10am
Champion County match
MCC v Surrey, four-day match, starting on Sunday, March 24, play starts at 10am
Both matches are at ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City. Admission is free.
The biog
Favourite colour: Brown
Favourite Movie: Resident Evil
Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices
Favourite food: Pizza
Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
TOUR DE FRANCE INFO
Dates: July 1-23
Distance: 3,540km
Stages: 21
Number of teams: 22
Number of riders: 198
TALE OF THE TAPE
Floyd Mayweather
- Height
- Weight
- Reach
- Record
Conor McGregor
- Height
- Weight
- Reach
- Record
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
