Although the US president, who is under increasing pressure to prove his fitness to serve another term in office, played down the gaffe during a high-stakes news conference later in the day, the episode drew international scrutiny.
Russian state media used Biden’s appearance to further criticize the NATO alliance, claiming he turned the occasion into “a farce.”
Asked by reporters at Shannon Airport in Ireland on Saturday about his reaction to the incident, Zelenskyy shrugged and said “it was a mistake,” CNN reported.
“I think the United States has been very supportive of the Ukrainians. We can forget some mistakes, I think,” he said.
In his remarks at a recent event on the Ukraine conflict, Biden said: “I now want to turn the floor over to the president of Ukraine, who has both courage and determination. Ladies and gentlemen, President Putin.”
He quickly corrected himself and said: “He’s going to defeat President Putin, President Zelenskyy. I’m so focused on defeating Putin that we have to worry about that.”
After referring to Zelenskyy as Putin, Biden confused Vice President Kamala Harris and former US President Donald Trump.
Asked if he was concerned about Harris’ ability to defeat Donald Trump if he decided not to run again, Biden replied: “Look, I would not have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president. But I think she’s not qualified to be president.”
Biden’s verbal gaffes come at a time when he is under fire for his advanced age. US President Joe Biden has vowed to “run this race to the finish” in the November election, despite private calls from Democrats for him to drop out.
The United States is providing Ukraine with crucial military aid in its fight against Russia. On Wednesday, the Biden administration unveiled a new $2.3 billion military aid package for Ukraine, as well as another $2.2 billion in arms purchases from American manufacturers under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which provides Kiev with long-term support.
Weeks earlier, the United States and Ukraine signed a bilateral security treaty that commits the United States to continue training Ukraine’s armed forces for the next ten years, as well as providing more weapons assistance and information.
At the time, Zelensky hailed the security pact as “a bridge to Ukraine’s NATO membership.”
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