For Putin, It's Finally Official

Russian President Vladimir Putin has finally congratulated US President-elect Joe Biden six weeks after Election Day. Putin offered his congratulations on Tuesday after voting by state electors, which confirmed 306 electoral votes for Biden. The Kremlin said it had waited for "official" results before commenting, though it took only a day for Putin to congratulate President Trump on his 2016 election victory, notes NBC News. Other leaders sent early congratulations to Biden even as Trump sought to overturn this year's results, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, British Prime Minster Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, per CNN.

Indeed, following Chinese President Xi Jinping's acknowledgements late last month, "Putin was one of the last world leaders who had not acknowledged Biden's victory," per USA Today. "For my part, I am ready for interaction and contact with you," Putin told Biden in a telegram, according to a statement from the Kremlin. It said "Putin wished the president-elect every success and expressed confidence that Russia and the United States, which have a special responsibility for global security and stability, could, despite their differences, really help to solve the many problems and challenges facing the world," per Reuters. (Putin might be fooling the public with two identical offices.)