‘Not the case at all’: Kremlin lambasts Biden’s assertion that main threat to US is Russia, wants further cooperation

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has rubbished claims by US presidential candidate Joe Biden that Russia is the greatest threat to the United States. The 77-year old Democrat told CBS that Moscow endangers the country's security.

“This is not the case at all,” said Peskov. “We can only regret that hatred against Russia is being spread this way, and our country is depicted as an adversary.”

Peskov's response comes after Biden told US TV show 60 Minutes that “the biggest threat to America right now, in terms of breaking up our security and our alliances, is Russia.”

Biden has long been hawkish toward Russia, and has used the presidential campaign to tie US President Donald Trump to Russian President Vladimir Putin. In September, Biden called Trump “Putin's puppy,” and accused the US president of not being tough enough on Moscow.

However, the Kremlin has consistently maintained that it wishes to improve relations with Washington, and has no preference for who wins the US election. On Friday, Peskov told TV network Channel One that “Russia has been working and will work with any US president elected by the American people.” He also rejected the accusation that Moscow prefers Trump, who “imposed a lot of sanctions” and has “taken many unfriendly steps.”

In 2012, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney made international headlines when he claimed that Washington’s biggest adversary is Russia. The suggestion was mocked by then-incumbent Barack Obama, who remarked that “the 1980s called, they want their foreign policy back.” Eight years later, Obama’s former Vice President Biden now supports Romney’s assessment.

One of the Kremlin's primary foreign policy objectives is extending the New START nuclear treaty, which regulates the number of warheads owned by each country. The agreement has been derided by Trump, who has threatened to let the deal expire on February 5, 2021. On October 16, Putin proposed pushing back the deadline one year to 2022, but it was knocked back by Washington.

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