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Opinion: Putin's nuclear threats confront the world with an urgent choice

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David A. Andelman writes that President jJoe Biden’s remarks at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday displayed that ‘the United States, and by definition Biden, are on the side of right.’
Russian President Vladimir Putin has — with one stroke — effectively removed Russia from any position among the world’s civilized nations, a fact President Joe Biden made abundantly clear in his Tuesday speech before the United Nations General Assembly.
Indeed, if there was one theme from Biden’s speech, it was a simple one: the United States, and by definition Biden, are on the side of right, and any others who may be waffling should see how appropriate it might be to get on board — though the US President will not seek to provoke conflict.

Biden opened his speech with a direct condemnation of Putin’s action on Tuesday calling up 300,000 reserve forces for deployment in Ukraine and his suggestion that a nuclear option was still on the table if he felt threatened. Above all, Biden observed, from the very moment Putin launched his war on Ukraine, his « imperial » action has « shamelessly violated the core tenets » of the United Nations and the charter under which it operates, and to which most members have pledged themselves.
« This war is about extinguishing Ukraine’s right to exist as a state, plain and simple, and Ukraine’s right to exist as a people. Whoever you are, wherever you live, whatever you believe … that should make your blood run cold, » the US President said.
Biden effectively framed it as a « contest between democracy and autocracy. » « If a nation can pursue their imperial ambitions without consequences, » well there should be no question which side the United States finds itself, nor which side the UN and its members as well should choose. « We chose liberty, » Biden added. From food security to nuclear non-proliferation to development, Russia has found itself on the wrong side of every equation, « pumping out lies.

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