Putin, Russia’s prime minister, also snubbed Biden, who had planned to go to Moscow and has been left kicking his heels in Brussels. Biden is close to Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgia’s president. During the 2008 Russian-Georgia war Putin famously threatened Saakashvili, pledging to “hang him by the balls”.
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The White House is privately furious at the snub. Barack Obama told Russia’s president, Dmitry Medvedev, he was unable to attend but had confidently offered Biden as his replacement. Moscow’s diplomatic corps has been abuzz all week with news of Putin’s unexpected veto.
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