President Joe Biden told reporters Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin “is losing the war in Iraq.”
The president appeared unaware that he said “Iraq” rather than “Ukraine” in response to a question about the Wagner Group’s coup attempt that took place the weekend of June 24. Biden said it was “hard to tell” what the results of the abortive uprising would be. (RELATED: ‘We Had Nothing To Do With It’: 7 CIA-Backed Coups Abroad)
Biden: “[Putin] is clearly losing the war in Iraq” pic.twitter.com/dKt6yWWGFx
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) June 28, 2023
The revolt, led by the mercenary Wagner Group, marched Moscow with little to no resistance, leading to speculation about the possibility of regime change. Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, halted the march on June 24 after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered a peace agreement between the Russian government and the mercenaries.
Putin reportedly wanted to “wipe out” Prigozhin in a show of strength after the revolt began, according to Reuters. Lukashenko’s peace agreement, however, prevented any retaliation upon Prigozhin, and the Wagner Group’s leader has instead been exiled to Belarus.
The Biden administration has spent over $110 billion on Ukraine and intends to send more funding in the coming months.
Biden previously mixed up Iraq and Ukraine in Nov. 2022, though in that instance he managed to catch his error and correct himself.