OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who serves on the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued a dire warning about Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The senator said he believed that “something is off” with Putin, who he said has become “even more dangerous” than he was before, in a tweet shared on Twitter on Monday.
“I wish I could share more, but for now I can say it’s pretty obvious to many that something is off with #Putin He has always been a killer, but his problem now is different & significant It would be a mistake to assume this Putin would react the same way he would have 5 years ago,” the senator said.
I wish I could share more,but for now I can say it’s pretty obvious to many that something is off with #Putin
He has always been a killer,but his problem now is different & significant
It would be a mistake to assume this Putin would react the same way he would have 5 years ago
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 26, 2022
The indication being that Rubio has some classified information that he cannot share.
The senator has more to say about Putin and how important it is for him to be perceived as strong.
“This is the most dangerous moment in 60 years #Putin’s is facing a humiliating military fiasco & he has triggered extraordinary consequences on #Russia’s economy & people that will not be easy to reverse,” he said. “And his only options to reset this imbalance are catastrophic ones.”
This is the most dangerous moment in 60 years#Putin’s is facing a humiliating military fiasco & he has triggered extraordinary consequences on #Russia’s economy & people that will not be easy to reverse
And his only options to reset this imbalance are catastrophic ones
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 28, 2022
“Understand for #Putin being seeing [sic] as ‘strong’ is essential #UkraineRussiaWar has been humiliating. He is using cluster bombs & other terror tactics to break the will to resist,” the senator said.
Understand for #Putin being seeing as “strong” is essential #UkraineRussiaWar has been humiliating
He is using cluster bombs & other terror tactics to break the will to resist
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 28, 2022
“DANGER #Putin’s legitimacy built on image as the strong leader who restored #Russia to superpower after the disasters of the 90’s Now the economy is in shambles & the military is being humiliated & his only tools to reestablish power balance with the West is cyber & nukes,” he said in a dire warning.
DANGER#Putin’s legitimacy built on image as the strong leader who restored #Russia to superpower after the disasters of the 90’s
Now the economy is in shambles & the military is being humiliated & his only tools to reestablish power balance with the West is cyber & nukes
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 28, 2022
But if there is a reason to be concerned about what could become a potential world war, President Joe Biden is not showing it.
President Joe Biden did not answer questions on Monday from reporters when they attempted to ask him about the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
Biden returned to the White House on Monday after spending the weekend back home in Delaware.
His response to arguably one of the biggest issues facing the world right now? Nothing. Biden did not stop to answer any questions from reporters about the conflict in Eastern Europe.
REPORTER 1: “Mr. President, is Ukraine winning the war?”
REPORTER 2: “Mr. President, do you believe Putin will use nuclear weapons?”
REPORTER 1: “Mr. President, are you worried about nuclear war?”
WATCH:
https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1498322349535350789
Ukrainian and Russian officials arrived at the Ukraine-Belarus border on Monday to begin “peace talks.”
Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov is leading the delegation to the peace talks in the Gomel region.
“The Biden administration announced Monday morning that Russia’s central bank will be prohibited from undertaking transactions in dollars under a new concerted effort by the U.S. and its allies, a move that is set to accelerate Russia’s economic tailspin,” Axios reported.
The German government also announced it will provide weapons including anti-tank missiles to Ukraine as its forces continue to battle against Russian troops.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made the decision on Saturday, in what was a historic shift away from the decades-old policy of never sending weapons to active conflicts.
Germany had come under withering pressure from NATO and the European Union to step up and help out the Ukrainians whose military is badly outmatched by superior Russian firepower and technology, not to mention sheer numbers of professional troops:
From its own stockpile, the German government will send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft defense systems to Ukraine. The government has also authorized the Netherlands to send Ukraine 400 rocket-propelled grenade launchers and told Estonia [to] … send nine howitzers.
A government spokesperson said the weapons will be delivered “as soon as possible.”