Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Wednesday, Jun 04, 2025

Putin rejects Trump’s criticism of Biden family business

Putin rejects Trump’s criticism of Biden family business

Russian leader marks out disagreement with one of Donald Trump’s attack lines in the US presidential election.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he saw nothing criminal in Hunter Biden’s past business ties with Ukraine or Russia, marking out his disagreement with one of Donald Trump’s attack lines in the US presidential election.

Putin was responding to comments made by Trump during televised debates with Democratic challenger Joe Biden ahead of the November 3 election.

Trump, who is trailing in opinion polls, has used the debates to make accusations that Biden and his son Hunter engaged in unethical practices in Ukraine. No evidence has been verified to support the allegations, and Joe Biden has called them false and discredited.

Putin, who has praised Trump in the past for saying he wanted better ties with Moscow, has said Russia would work with any US leader, while noting what he called Joe Biden’s “sharp anti-Russian rhetoric”.

Putin appeared less friendly towards Trump in remarks broadcast by Russian state TV on Sunday. In what may be seen by some analysts as an attempt to try to curry favour with the Biden camp, he took the time to knock down what he made clear he regarded as false allegations from Trump about the Bidens.

“Yes, in Ukraine he (Hunter Biden) had or maybe still has a business, I don’t know. It doesn’t concern us. It concerns the Americans and the Ukrainians,” said Putin.

“But, well yes he had at least one company, which he practically headed up, and judging from everything he made good money. I don’t see anything criminal about this, at least we don’t know anything about this (being criminal).”

Putin also reacted with visible irritation when asked about comments Trump has made concerning Putin’s ties to the former mayor of Moscow, and to an alleged payment made to Hunter Biden by the ex-mayor’s widow. Putin said he knew nothing about the existence of any commercial relationship between Hunter and the woman. Joe Biden said the accusation about his son was not true.


Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden.


US intelligence agencies concluded that Russia tried to interfere in the 2016 US presidential election to tilt the contest in Trump’s favour, an allegation Moscow has denied. Russia has also dismissed accusations by US intelligence agencies of trying to interfere with this year’s election too.

In another sign that Moscow could be preparing for a possible Biden victory, Putin earlier paid tribute to the Democratic Party, which he said shared the same left-wing values that he had grown up with as member of the Communist Party in the USSR.

He even praised “candidate Biden”, because he was in favour of extending a landmark nuclear treaty.

Analyst Alexander Shumilin of the Russian Academy of Sciences described the comments as opportunistic.

“He saw that he (Biden) had better polls,” Shumilin said.

In an interview with Russian TV in early October, Putin complained that since the start of the Trump administration, Russia had been targeted by sanctions 46 times.

This included the imposing of new sanctions or the expansion of already existing measures.

“You have to look at things objectively,” he said. “The intentions President Trump spoke of earlier have not come true”.

Not only has the question of Russian interference always loomed over Trump’s presidency, the two countries have accumulated disagreements on several global issues.

Washington has stepped up its military deployment in Syria after tensions with Russia, which is the main backer of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

The US Electoral College: how does it work and why does it exist?


The United States also withdrew from two major international accords – the Iran nuclear deal and the Open Skies treaty – and pulled out from a centrepiece arms control agreement with Russia, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty.

Moreover, Washington imposed sanctions on companies involved in the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, a joint venture between Russia and Germany, and stepped up sanctions targeting allies of Moscow, including Venezuela and the ex-Soviet republic of Belarus.

The 2018 poisoning of former intelligence officer Sergei Skripal in Britain led to the biggest mutual expulsion of Russian and US diplomats since the Cold War.

Trump “was not the president to break the impasse in Russian-American relations”, said Maria Lipman of the Ponars Eurasia research centre.

The US Congress – where the Democrats have the majority – have also been making life difficult for the Kremlin by imposing sanctions.

In the end, “Trump or Biden – I don’t think there is a favourable prospect for Russia,” said Lipman.

This was echoed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in an interview with Russian-language TV channel RTVI: “We realise that there will be no major changes in our current relations either with the Democrats or with the Republicans.”

Moscow could benefit from a political crisis in the US, for example in the event of Trump refusing to accept the result, something he has repeatedly evoked.

This scenario was also mentioned by Lavrov.

“We would not like to see such a leading global power, like the United States, fall into a deep crisis if new disturbances are added to the current manifestations of violence and racism,” he said, quoted by TASS news agency.

For Lipman, “post-election chaos” has great appeal for the Kremlin.

“The United States will be focused on its own affairs and not on Russia. And (Moscow) will make use of this”.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Global News Roundup: From Ukraine's strategic military strikes and Russia's demands and Tensions Escalate in Ukraine, to serious legal issues faced by Britons in Bali and Trump's media criticism, the latest developments highlight a turbulent landscape
U.S. Reduces Military Presence in Syria
Trump Demands Iran End All Uranium Enrichment in Nuclear Talks
Iran Warns Europe Against Politicizing UN Nuclear Report
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
European and Arab Ministers Convene in Madrid to Address Gaza Conflict
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
UAE Offers Free ChatGPT Plus Subscriptions to Citizens
Lebanon Initiates Plan to Disarm Palestinian Factions
Iran and U.S. Make Limited Progress in Nuclear Talks
The Daily Debate: The Fall of the Dollar — Strategic Reset or Economic Self-Destruction?
Trump Administration's Tariff Policies and Dollar Strategy Spark Global Economic Debate
OpenAI Acquires Jony Ive’s Startup for $6.5 Billion to Build a Revolutionary “Third Core Device”
Turkey Weighs Citizens in Public as Erdoğan Launches National Slimming Campaign
Saudi-Spanish Business Forum Commences in Riyadh
Saudi Arabia and Spain Sign MoU to Boost SME Sectors
UK Suspends Trade Talks with Israel Amid Gaza Offensive
Iran and U.S. Set for Fifth Round of Nuclear Talks Amid Rising Tensions
Russia Expands Military Presence Near Finland Amid Rising Tensions
Indian Scholar Arrested in Crackdown Over Pakistan Conflict Commentary
Israel Eases Gaza Blockade Amid Internal Dispute Over Military Strategy
President Biden’s announcement of advanced prostate cancer sparked public sympathy—but behind closed doors, Democrats are in panic
A Chinese company made solar tiles that look way nicer than regular panels!
Indian jet shootdown: the all-robot legion behind China’s PL-15E missiles
The Chinese Dragon: The True Winner in the India-Pakistan Clash
Australia's Venomous Creatures Contribute to Life-Saving Antivenom Programme
The Spanish Were Right: Long Working Hours Harm Brain Function
Did Former FBI Director Call for Violence Against Trump? Instagram Post Sparks Uproar
US and UAE Partner to Develop Massive AI Data Center Complex
Apple's $95 Million Siri Settlement: Eligible Users Have Until July 2 to File Claims
US and UAE Reach Preliminary Agreement on Nvidia AI Chip Imports
President Trump and Elon Musk Welcomed by Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim with Cybertruck Convoy
Strong Warning Issued: Do Not Use General Chatbots for Medical, Legal, or Educational Guidance
Saudi Arabia Emerges as Global Tech Magnet with U.S. Backing and Trump’s Visit
This was President's departure from Saudi Arabia. The Crown Prince personally escorted him back to the airport.
NVIDIA and Saudi Arabia Launch Strategic Partnership to Establish AI Centers
Trump Meets Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Historic Encounter
Trump takes a blow torch to the neocons and interventionists while speaking to the Saudis
US and Saudi Arabia Sign Landmark Agreements Across Multiple Sectors
×