'Putin and Hamas': 5 Key Takeaways From Biden's Ukraine and Israel Op-Ed

U.S. President Joe Biden has directly compared Russian President Vladimir Putin to Palestinian militant group Hamas, doubling down on a similar reference he made in October.

The U.S. "cannot, and will not" allow the Kremlin leader and the Palestinian militant group that launched shock attacks on Israel in early October to disrupt order in the Middle East and eastern Europe, Biden wrote in an opinion piece for The Washington Post, published on Saturday.

U.S. lawmakers are increasingly divided over the Washington's so-far steadfast support for Israel and Ukraine. In mid-October, the Biden administration proposed more than $100 billion in supplementary funding, including significant chunks for Israel and Ukraine.

The funding "advances our national security and supports our allies and partners," the White House said at the time. The House of Representatives passed a Republican plan for more than $14 billion in aid for Israel in early November.

Although two distinct conflicts, Biden tethers the two wars together in Saturday's piece, echoing previous comments from the administration looking to loop the two bloody conflicts under one umbrella of "fights for democracy against terrorism and tyranny."

The Kremlin leader and the Palestinian militants who launched the shock October 7 attacks on Israel are both "fighting to wipe a neighboring democracy off the map," Biden said.

"Both Putin and Hamas hope to collapse broader regional stability and integration and take advantage of the ensuing disorder," he added. "America cannot, and will not, let that happen."

The U.S.'s involvement in thwarting Moscow and Hamas is for "our own national security interests — and for the good of the entire world," Biden said.

Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.

'Revitalized' Palestinian Authority should govern

The Palestinian Authority, which currently controls the West Bank, should ultimately govern the Gaza Strip that Israel is currently attempting to clear of Hamas control, Biden said.

"As we strive for peace, Gaza and the West Bank should be reunited under a single governance structure, ultimately under a revitalized Palestinian Authority, as we all work toward a two-state solution," Biden wrote.

But this suggestion was roundly rejected by Israel on Saturday. "The Palestinian Authority in its current form is not able to take responsibility for Gaza," Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in remarks reported by Israeli media. "After we fought and did all this, how could we hand it over to them?"

Following the October 7 attacks, Israel launched a large-scale airstrike campaign on Gaza, from where Hamas launched its surprise assaults. Israel's military has since rolled out a ground operation in the north of the strip. The territory sits to the southwest of Israel, with the West Bank more centrally located.

It is "impossible to put in Gaza an authority that supports terror, abets terror, and pays terrorists," Netanyahu said. But he has also said the Israeli military expects to have "complete freedom of action in the Gaza Strip against any threat."

The Israeli Defense Ministry has been contacted for comment via email.

White House National Security spokesperson, John Kirby, indicated earlier this month that the U.S. did not believe that Hamas would be in control of Gaza following the end of the war with Israel, Reuters reported on November 1.

"What comes after the conflict, we don't have all the answers yet but we are working with our partners in the region to explore what governance in Gaza can and should look like," Kirby said.

"I have been emphatic with Israel's leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," Biden added on Saturday.

The U.S. 'is the essential nation'

"The United States is the essential nation," Biden said, positioning Washington in a central role for the conflicts in both eastern Europe and the Middle East. The U.S. has heavily supported Israel and Ukraine, but has stopped firmly short of becoming directly involved in the conflicts.

"The world looks to us to solve the problems of our time," Biden added. "That is the duty of leadership, and America will lead."

Calling the U.S. the "essential nation" draws on the term the president used in a rare Oval Office speech in mid-October following a visit to Israel. "What would happen if we walked away? We are the essential nation," Biden said on October 20.

"if we walk away from the challenges of today, the risk of conflict could spread, and the costs to address them will only rise. We will not let that happen," Biden added on Saturday.

U.S. 'prepared to take our own steps'

In the article, Biden called for an end to violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank, adding the U.S. was "prepared to take our own steps." This includes "issuing visa bans against extremists attacking civilians," he wrote.

"I have been emphatic with Israel's leaders that extremist violence against Palestinians in the West Bank must stop and that those committing the violence must be held accountable," Biden wrote.

Israel is now part of the U.S.'s Visa Waiver Program, meaning that for the past month, eligible Israelis have been able to apply to enter the U.S. as tourists or on business for up to 90 days without needing a visa.

On November 16, State Department spokesman, Matthew Miller, told the media that the department was "aware of reports that there are American citizens in the West Bank who are unable to transit through Israel as they are allowed to do under the requirements of the Visa Waiver Program."

He told reporters that Washington had "expressed concerns" to Israel's government, adding: "We expect Israel to address those concerns."

"We expect them to be in full compliance with the Visa Waiver Program, and there are remedial measures that we—that are available to us if they are not," he added.

No sign of U.S. boots on the ground

There is still no indication that U.S. troops could be sent to Gaza or Ukraine. "We are keeping American troops out of this war by supporting the brave Ukrainians defending their freedom and homeland," Biden said of Washington's support for Kyiv.

Since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, Washington has pledged more than $44.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. But the Biden administration has said since the early days of the conflict that U.S. soldiers will not be heading to the front lines in Ukraine.

U.S. forces "are not and will not be engaged in a conflict with Russia in Ukraine," Biden said in February 2022. The president said at the time that U.S. forces would be transferred to Europe, but they were not heading to the continent "to fight in Ukraine, but to defend our NATO allies and reassure those allies in the east."

In mid-July 2023, Biden said he had authorized an additional 3,000 reserve troops to be sent to Europe. These soldiers "are not additional forces" but will "augment what we already have there," the Pentagon said in a media briefing at the time, adding their activities will be decided by the U.S. European Command.

"From the outset, I have said I will not send American troops to fight in Ukraine," Biden reiterated on October 20.

In early November, the White House said there were "no plans or intentions to put U.S. military troops on the ground in Gaza, now or in the future."

The U.S. significantly boosted its military presence in the Middle East with two aircraft carrier strike groups, among other resources, and placed around 2,000 U.S. soldiers on prepare-to-deploy orders in mid-October.

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