President Biden leaves people baffled as he nibbles child - who isn't impressed
Older children may be delighted to meet the leader of the free world - but for one little girl, it was all too much.
President Joe Biden ’s attempts playful attempt to engage with a small girl went awry after he pretended to nibble her during a campaign trail stop in Finland.
The world leader was meeting and greeting embassy staff and their families before jumping onto Air Force One at Helsinki-Vantaan International Airport when he met the little girl and her family.
He pretended he was going to nibble the little girl before attempting to give her a kiss – which was firmly rejected as she awkwardly snubbed the politician.
The girl's mum was left in stitches at the sweet attempt to say hello, but the child merely scowled at the President who turned away.
'Chinese spy balloon' sparks concern after flying over sensitive sites in the US
The mum was in stitches - but the child wasn't so impressed (Twitter)She continued to squirm and turned her back on the commander-in-chief as her mum tried to take a selfie.
Meanwhile Biden kept making faces at her before appearing to try to sniff her head or nuzzle her.
Biden’s was the sixth U.S president to visit Finland, a country of 5.5 million that has hosted several U.S.-Soviet and U.S.-Russia summits. The first involved President Gerald Ford, who would sign the so-called Helsinki Accords with more than 30 other nations in 1975.
“The fact that Biden has chosen to go specifically to Finland for Finland is symbolic and, in some ways, very concrete,” Salonius-Pasternak said. “It’s a kind of deterrence messaging that only the United States can do.”
In the Cold War era, Finland acted as a neutral buffer between Moscow and Washington, and its leaders played a balancing act between the East and West, maintaining good relations with both superpowers.
Other attendees were happier to engage (Twitter)Finland and neighboring Sweden gave up their traditional political neutrality by joining the European Union in 1995 but both remained militarily nonaligned, with opinion polls showing a clear majority of their citizens opposed to joining NATO. That changed quickly after Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine.
President Joe Biden pledged Wednesday that western allies “will not waver” in defense of Ukraine, casting the struggle against Russian aggression as one of the world's central challenges requiring a broad coalition of countries to stand in defense of freedom.
“Our unity will not falter," Biden declared. "I promise you.”
He made the promise at the NATO summit in the capital of Lithuania, a country that he said knows the “transformational power of freedom" after spending decades under Moscow's thumb. He drew parallels between Lithuania's struggle to escape Soviet rule and Ukraine's ongoing fight to repel Russia's deadly invasion, highlighting the importance of rallying allies to take on the challenge.
“America never recognised the Soviet occupation of the Baltic," he said to an outpouring of cheers from a crowd of thousands in a courtyard at Vilnius University draped with American and Lithuanian flags. "Never, never.” More spectators gathered in an overflow area, where a big screen was set up.
Joe Biden says 'we'll take care of' China spy balloon as 3 airports shut down
Biden spent two days in Vilnius for the annual NATO summit, where members of the western military alliance pledged more support for Ukraine but stopped short of extending an invitation for the besieged country to join the alliance.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
