US and Russian leaders criticize each other.

President Biden called Putin "crazy," prompting a strong reaction from the Kremlin and prompting the Russian Foreign Ministry to call it "Hollywood cowboy" behavior.

"We have crazy bastards like Putin, we always have to worry about nuclear conflict, but the existential threat to humanity is the climate issue," U.S. President Joe Biden told supporters at a fundraising event in San Francisco, California on February 21.

"Of course, he couldn't say to me: 'Volodya (Putin's nickname) did a great job, thank you for your support which helped me a lot,'" the Russian president said.

US President Joe Biden (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo: AFP — US President Joe Biden (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo: *AFP*

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reacted even more strongly, saying Biden's criticism was "a great shame for America itself."

"The fact that the US President used such language to attack the head of another country is unlikely to harm our President, but it diminishes the dignity of the person using those words," Peskov said. "It's shameful for a president to use such language. President Putin never used such vulgar words to speak to him. Clearly, Biden is exhibiting Hollywood-style cowboy behavior to serve domestic political interests."

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev stated that the existential threat to the world comes from "useless old men, like Biden himself." According to Medvedev, Biden is "old and weak" and "ready to wage war with Russia."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova mentioned Biden's son, who is facing numerous legal troubles, in response to the US President's comments.

"If Joe Biden utters the word 'crazy bastard' again, he should remember that in the minds of Americans, this phrase is primarily associated with Hunter Biden," Zakharova posted on X.

Back in January 2022, Biden also called a Fox News journalist a "son of a bitch" and later called to apologize.

President Biden, 81, has often used harsh language against Putin since Russia launched its war in Ukraine, including calling the Kremlin leader a "war criminal."

In an interview with ABC News in March 2021, when asked if he thought President Putin was a "murderer," Biden replied "yes." Russia recalled its ambassador in Washington for consultations, while Putin responded that Biden was "judging others by his own standards." The Russian president also said Biden had called him to explain why he used that term.

In Warsaw, Poland, in 2022, Biden said Putin "cannot continue to be in power." Hardliners in Russia saw this as evidence that the U.S. wanted to overthrow President Putin, but the White House denied the accusation.

Huyen Le (According to AFP , Reuters , WPDE )

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