During his final speeches before returning from Europe to Washington, President Joe Biden referred to Russian President Vladimir Putin as a "butcher" and made some unexpected comments about the foreign leader.
During his second to last speech in Poland, President Biden shared his dismay towards the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but, while he was speaking, Russian artillery fell on the Ukrainian city of Lviv, injuring at least five people.
Following the bombing of the western Ukrainian city that has seen minimal action in the war-torn country, Biden gave his final speech in the courtyard of an old Polish castle before boarding Air Force One. But, according to his aides, he did not stick to his script.
"For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power," Biden said of Putin off-the-cuff while closing out his remarks.
Biden's final comments in Europe were reportedly not what his aides had written in his speech approved by the White House and have stirred up some hard feelings internationally, CNN reported.
White House officials were quick to try and clarify that the president was not calling for a change in the Russian regime, the New York Times reported.
However, the Kremlin took his comments to mean just that, responding that Russia's ruler is "not to be decided by Mr. Biden."
Julianne Smith, Biden's ambassador to NATO, shared with CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that she believes his comments were nothing more than human emotion after seeing what he has in Europe.
"He went to the National Stadium in Warsaw and literally met with hundreds of Ukrainians. He heard their heroic stories as they were fleeing Ukraine in the wake of Russia's brutal war in Ukraine. In the moment, I think that was a principled human reaction to the stories that he had heard that day," Smith said.
Russia has been waging war on Ukraine for over a month now. Biden's harsh comments towards Putin on Saturday are only the latest, as the president's view of the Russian leader worsens.
Over the past month, Biden has referred to Putin as a "pure thug," "war criminal," murderous dictator," and now "butcher" after visiting with refugees.
Biden's trip now comes to a close as he returns to Washington, having seen the horrors Ukrainian refugees have experienced firsthand while also meeting with European leaders face-to-face.
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