Radio silence on Independence Day: Putin does not want to congratulate Biden on July 4th

July 4th, Independence Day, is celebrated extensively in the United States.

Radio silence on Independence Day: Putin does not want to congratulate Biden on July 4th

July 4th, Independence Day, is celebrated extensively in the United States. The Kremlin announced that there will be no "congratulatory telegram" from Vladimir Putin to Joe Biden this year. That would hardly be "appropriate" at the "culmination of an unfriendly policy" by the US towards Russia.

Out of anger at what he sees as anti-Russian US policy, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin is not congratulating his colleague Joe Biden on US Independence Day this year. "No, no congratulatory telegram will be sent this year," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Interfax agency.

"That's because this year has become the culmination of unfriendly policies towards our country by the United States," he said, referring to the US holiday on July 4th. "Therefore, it can hardly be considered appropriate to send such a message of congratulations under these circumstances."

Russia-US relations, already tenuous in recent years, have been at rock bottom since Russia's attack on Ukraine in late February. Regardless of its own aggression against the neighboring country, Moscow has for weeks presented itself primarily as a victim of allegedly anti-Russian policies from abroad. The Russian leadership is particularly annoyed by Western arms aid for Ukraine and the planned NATO expansion.