Kremlin-Biden Withdrawal 'Not A Priority Issue For Russia'

Wires carrying comments from the Kremlin spox Dmitry Peskov regarding US President Joe Biden's withdrawal from the election race. Peskov claims that 'this is a priority issue for US voters but not a priority issue for Russia,' adding that 'relations with the US have gone through the worst period in history', but that 'the future of relations with the US is very important'. Peskov claims that 'our priority is our development and achieving the goals of the special military operation [the invasion of Ukraine].'

• Says that 'we were not too surprised by Biden's decision...our recent experience in dealing with Washington has taught us not to be surprised by anything.'
• On Kamala Harris, Peskov says 'we cannot currently assess the impact of her potential candidacy on relations with Moscow', and claims he 'cannot recall any contacts between President Vladimir Putin and Harris'.
• Peskov: "There were some statements [from Harris] that were replete with rhetoric that was quite unfriendly towards our country. We have not recorded any other actions of hers with regard to bilateral relations, either positive or negative,"
• Peskov says that the Kremlin does not expect any change in the US' stance on Ukraine, with Washington still providing aid to Kyiv.
• With Harris the Democratic frontrunner, there will be a major increase in focus on her foreign policy stances over the coming days and weeks. Harris has played a relatively active role in foreign affairs in recent years, attending events such as the ASEAN summit in Indonesia, and the Munich Security Conference in Germany.