CNN’s Zakaria: Biden Gave ‘No New Policy Really Toward Russia’ – Russian Air Ban ‘Very Small’

During CNN’s State of the Union coverage on Tuesday, CNN host Fareed Zakaria said that Biden’s speech contained “no new policy really toward Russia” aside from the “very small, incremental adjustment” of banning Russian aircraft from U.S. airspace.

Zakaria began by saying that the speech was “a very strong speech, delivered well, started well, ended well. A very traditional State of the Union speech, and what he said, I think, showed resolution, showed determination.”

After fellow host Anderson Cooper mentioned that “really the only thing new was not allowing Russian aircraft into the United States.” Zakaria responded, “There was no new policy really toward Russia. The ban on Russian aircraft is a very small, incremental adjustment. I wish there had been a little bit more on how there are probably going to need to be daily incremental adjustments, by which I mean the costs have to keep ratcheting up for Vladimir Putin. Biden framed the whole issue very powerfully. I just hope that Americans understand that this does not come cost-free. And it seemed to me he was anxious to get to the very important part of his domestic agenda, where he said some very important things. But, you know, this crisis is not going away.”

He concluded, “[W]e have to, most importantly, imagine and prepare for a long crisis. Because this could go on for a while, and, more importantly, we have to have a long-term strategy to deal with an imperial Russia under Vladimir Putin that is determined to dominate its space. That is a huge challenge for the security of Europe and the security of the world.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett