On Morning Joe, Keir Simmons Says ‘Putin Not Frightened’ By Biden Sanctions Threat

Biden’s boasts about the “severe sanctions” that will be placed if Russia invades Ukraine are laughable.

Monday Morning JoeNBC international correspondent Keir Simon [who’s never been accused of anti-Democrat bias]Reporting from Moscow, he repeatedly stated that Putin says he is not afraid of Biden’s threats to sanctions.

Simmons pointed out the fact that Russia had built up large dollar reserves over recent years. Simmons also pointed out that Putin’s closest cronies cannot leave Russia because they are sanctioned. Simmons suggested that Putin could use the opportunity to cut gas supplies from Germany and cause a panic there.

Ted Cruz pointed to the fact that Biden’s “fecklessness” in withdrawing from Afghanistan was a factor making a Russian attack on Ukraine, and a Chinese strike on Taiwan much more probable.

Simmons made fun of the possible Biden-Putin summit and suggested that at best, “I guess they could delay things.”

What cards is Biden allowed to hold? Simmons couldn’t identify any.

Even NBC/MSNBC doesn’t believe Biden’s sanction strategy for Ukraine, it’s clear that things aren’t going well on the Ukrainian front.

On Morning Joe, NBC’s Keir Simmons saying that Putin “isn’t frightened” by Biden’s sanctions should Russia invade Ukraine was sponsored in part by Subway, Comcast, and Pfizer, maker of Nexium.

You can find the transcription here.

MSNBC
Morning Joe
2/21/22
6:07 am ET

WILLIEGEIST: It is clear that Putin may be playing games in this area. Is that what you think?

KEIR SIMMONS : Willie. I believe diplomatically, Matt spoke about changes in the ground, and the daily changes. Diplomatically speaking nothing has really changed and that is the problem. I think they have the ability to delay those negotiations, which President Macron has been pushing.There may be a delay before Secretary Blinken or Mr. Lavrov meets later in the week. Perhaps there will be some delay before President Putin or President Biden meet. 

However, Ukraine fundamentally, the Ukrainian government won’t start Minsk implementation.The Russians have built dollar reserves over the years. This goes back to Putin’s speech in Munich. They now hold $630 billionMore than in reserve

This tells us that the President is a good man.Putin was preparing for the day for many, long years.Why do I say this? Because the Secretary of State spoke on The press Yesterday, he spoke out about the need for massive sanctions.

This is how it feels viscerally. In essence, Putin doesn’t fear. His inner circle is already approved so he’s not afraid. They are not allowed to leave Russia. Because he has these reserves, he isn’t afraid. It’s clear that he isn’t afraid of Russia because he already knows what his next move will be. [corrects himself]– To cut the gas supply to Germany and cause panic in Germany. Perhaps it was some type of massive cyberattack. 

This is why this conflict poses such a risk. Because once it starts you never know which direction it will go. It is important to continue diplomatic negotiations,It seems that we really are at the very last chance saloon.