Joe Biden said Vladimir Putin “cannot remain in power” and warned the west to prepare for a “long fight ahead” in a passionate speech in Poland that invoked Europe’s past struggles against totalitarianism.
The US president initially appeared to call for an end to the Russian president’s regime in what would have amounted to a dramatic shift in US foreign policy, but the White House quickly rowed back on his remarks and insisted he was not explicitly calling for Mr Putin’s ousting.
