By Shannon Pettypiece -
NBC News
President Joe Biden predicted on Wednesday that a Russian invasion of Ukraine is likely, because despite US efforts to resolve the conflict, Moscow continues to mobilize troops at the gates of the neighboring country.
"I guess he'll get in," Biden said at the White House, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine.
"There's a whole range of things that I'm sure you're trying to figure out, how fast you can do what you want to do and what you want to do," the president said.
“But he is an informed person, and I am sure he is calculating the immediate, short, medium and long-term consequences for Russia.
And
I don't think it's been decided
,” he added.
Biden warned of the consequences an invasion would have for Putin.
“I think he's going to pay a serious, high price for that that he doesn't think it's going to cost him now what it's going to cost him, and I think he's going to regret doing it,” he said.
The White House has threatened Russia with sanctions, but this has not led to a resolution of tensions between the two neighboring countries.
An extensive press conference
During the lengthy news conference for his first year in office, Biden also acknowledged the frustration many Americans say they feel with rising inflation and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We've faced some of the biggest challenges we've ever faced in this country in the last few years, challenges to our public health, challenges to our economy.
But we're getting over it," he said.
“We are laying the foundation for a future where America succeeds in the 21st century by creating jobs at a record pace.
And we need to control inflation.”
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Biden said he will make more trips in his second year to tout his accomplishments, including passing a $500 billion infrastructure bill.
He also said he will continue to push for his $1.7 billion social spending bill.
During his second national news conference as president, Biden celebrated the accomplishments of his first year, including
vaccinating 200 million Americans, efforts to keep schools and businesses open
, and economic growth.
But he said he will continue to take steps to control the pandemic, including more testing.
He also urged the Federal Reserve to take action to tackle inflation.
[Biden celebrates one year of government, how many promises has he kept?]
The news conference marked the first time Biden had formally fielded questions from the entire White House press corps since the climate summit in Scotland on Nov. 2.
Biden fielded reporters' questions as his approval rating continues to decline since the summer.
Democrats on Capitol Hill have struggled to muster the votes to pass their welfare spending bill, as well as voting rights legislation.
The president ends his first year in the White House amid a surge in COVID-19 infections, even among the vaccinated, as hospitals are overwhelmed with seriously ill unvaccinated patients.
In economics, unemployment figures have fallen, but inflation has reached the highest level in decades.
Biden has held the fewest news conferences by a president in the first year in office since Ronald Reagan.
