Did Putin get 'exactly what he wanted' out of Biden summit?

ABC News reporter Rachel Scott — who asked Russian President Vladimir Putin last week "what he's afraid of" after noting that his political opponents frequently end up dead or imprisoned — told her colleague George Stephanopoulos on Sunday's edition of This Week that critics of President Biden's meeting with his Russian counterpart will say "Putin got exactly what he wanted" from the summit. "He is on the world stage ... and he was the talk of the town" without having to admit to, or even acknowledge in a meaningful way, the allegations of human rights abuses he faces, Scott explained.
But over on NBC News, Fiona Hill, who served as the National Security Council's top Russia adviser from 2017 to 2019, said that while simply having a sit-down with Biden was a "very important win" for Putin, he still has to deliver back home. "He's got to show he's still popular" in Russia's 2024 elections, she said, and he's also dealing with a challenging COVID-19 vaccine rollout. "So Putin's got to figure out how to navigate things, and he can't just basically live off an episodic meeting with the United States president in Geneva for months to come," she said. "He has to get something out of this, as well."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Judge rejects top state charges in Mangione case
Speed Read If convicted, Mangione faces up to life in state prison
-
UN panel finds Israeli genocide in Gaza
Speed Read The report found that Israeli leaders had committed ‘four of the five “genocidal acts”’ prohibited under the U.N. Genocide Convention
-
Trump allies reportedly poised to buy TikTok
Speed Read Under the deal, U.S. companies would own about 80% of the company
-
Russian drone tests Romania as Trump spins
Speed Read Trump is ‘resisting congressional plans to impose newer and tougher penalties on Russia’s energy sector’
-
Kim Jong Un’s triumph: the rise and rise of North Korea’s dictator
In the Spotlight North Korean leader has strengthened ties with Russia and China, and recently revealed his ‘respected child’ to the world
-
‘Peak consumption has become the Holy Grail of the energy debate’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
Burkina Faso's misinformation war
Under The Radar The president of the West African country has quickly become the face of a viral, AI-powered propaganda campaign
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law