Putin has 'already lost' the war in Ukraine, Biden says
Coming off a "very productive summit" with NATO allies, President Joe Biden offered a forceful dismissal of Vladimir Putin’s efforts to capture Ukraine during a joint press conference in Helsinki with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.
"There is no possibility of him winning the war in Ukraine. He's already lost that war," Biden said.
Biden has made similar statements before about Putin’s chances of success, though it’s particularly notable coming off of his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his top military officials Wednesday.
Biden wouldn’t give a timeline for how long he thinks the war can continue, but he ruled out a yearslong offense.
"I don't think the war could go on for years for two reasons. No. 1, I do not think that Russia could maintain the war forever -- No. 1 in terms of their resources and capacity. No. 2, I think that there is going to be a circumstance where eventually, President Putin is going to decide it’s not in the interest of Russia economically, politically or otherwise to continue this war," Biden said.
"But I can't predict exactly how that happens," he continued. "My hope is and my expectation is you’ll see that Ukraine makes significant progress on their offensive and that it generates a negotiated settlement somewhere along the line."
-ABC News' Molly Nagle and Cheyenne Haslett