Biden's Meeting With Putin Is 'Most Dangerous' Part Of His Trip, Top Republican Says

KEY POINTS

Biden and Putin will meet in Geneva, Switzerland this week
The US president is expected to warn Putin against future "reckless and aggressive actions"
Biden will hold a solo press conference following his meeting with the Russian leader

A top Republican official on Sunday suggested that President Joe Biden’s scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will be the "most dangerous" part of his trip.

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-TX, appeared on ABC’s "This Week" on Sunday where he suggested that Biden's meeting with Putin will be the most important part of his first foreign trip as president.

"I think it's important we work with our NATO allies. We work with the G-7," he said. "I do think it’s smart to meet with our NATO allies and G-7 prior to the Putin summit, which is going to be the most powerful and most dangerous meeting on this trip."

President Biden is expected to meet with Russian President Putin in Geneva, Switzerland, later this week. Biden, who is known to be blunt in his assessment of his Russian counterpart, is expected to send a warning against committing future "reckless and aggressive actions," including election interference and cyber attack, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

"What the president is going to make clear to President Putin is we seek a more stable, predictable relationship with Russia," he said during a Sunday appearance on CNN’s "State of the Union."

“But if Russia chooses to continue reckless and aggressive actions, we will respond forcefully as the president has already demonstrated that he would when it comes to election interference, or the Solar Winds cyber attack, or the attempt to murder Mr. Navalny with a chemical weapon," he added.

Secy. of State Blinken says President Biden "is going to make clear to Vladimir Putin is that we seek a more stable, predictable relationship with Russia. ...But if Russia continues reckless and aggressive actions, we will respond forcefully." #CNNSOTU https://t.co/bheuqBQJYB pic.twitter.com/GJrllAPQZC
— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) June 13, 2021

The White House said it is setting low expectations on Biden’s meeting with Putin, noting that the president's aim is to have a more predictable relationship with Russia. Biden’s meeting with Putin in Geneva comes after the U.S. president participated in the G-7 summit in Cornwall, England, and met with NATO and European Union leaders in Brussels.

President Biden is expected to hold a press conference following the meeting. The two leaders are not expected to appear together. This is in contrast to former President Donald Trump and Putin's joint press conference in 2018, where the former leader cast doubt on U.S. intelligence reports of Russian interference during the 2016 election.