What are Biden and Putins summit objectives?
On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet at the summit table with their own agendas and non-negotiable red lines. The highly anticipated summit in Geneva, Switzerland, will be Mr. Bidens first meeting with Mr. Putin since assuming office, and it will be a high-stakes diplomatic event at a time when both leaders believe that US-Russian ties are at an all-time low. While neither side holds out much hope for significant areas of agreement, each leader brings his own set of objectives to the meeting. Mr. Biden and his advisers have made it clear that he will not follow in the footsteps of his recent predecessors in attempting to drastically alter US-Russia relations. Instead, the White House is pursuing a more modest but crucial goal: moving toward a more predictable relationship with Russia and attempting to rein in Russias disruptive behavior. Mr. Bidens first overseas trip was planned so that he would meet with Mr. Putin only after spending days visiting with European friends and powerful democracies, including a meeting at Nato, the decades-old organization designed to counter Russian aggression. After four years of turmoil under former President Donald Trump, who frequently tried to cozy up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, he intended to convey a feeling of togetherness and fresh cooperation. Mr. Biden will press Mr. Putin to stop interfering in democratic elections, to de-escalate tensions with Ukraine, and to cease providing safe haven to cyber- and ransomware criminals. Aides believe that reducing the temperature with Russia will strengthen the US relations to democracies that exist outside of Moscows orbit. Mr Biden would search for areas where, in our common interest, we can work together to generate outcomes that are  that work for the United States and for the American people, according to national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Mr Bidens other message, according to Mr Sullivan, will be more of a stick than a carrot: How do we. (This is a brief piece.)