The American journalist denounced the alleged plan as “insane,” citing concerns about the fate of Russia’s vast nuclear arsenal
The administration of former US President Joe Biden tried to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Ukraine conflict, American journalist and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson has claimed.
In an interview with journalist Matt Taibbi on Monday, Carlson suggested that many former and current US officials have been rattled by President Donald Trump’s campaign to declassify numerous government papers, as they see the potential fallout as extremely dangerous.
“I think this was one of the reasons [ex-Secretary of State] Tony Blinken was pushing so hard for a real war, trying to kill Putin, for example… The Biden administration did [it], they tried to kill Putin,” Carlson said, without providing any further details about the alleged assassination plot.
Carlson, who broadcast a bombshell interview with Putin last February, described the alleged move as “insane,” pointing to the potentially cataclysmic fallout for global security.
“Who takes over Russia? What happens to the nuclear arsenal in a country so complex that outsiders can’t even understand… That’s demented that you would even think about something like that,” he added.
US officials have never publicly acknowledged plans to assassinate Putin, or any other Russian or Soviet leaders. However, Newsweek reported in September 2022 that US defense officials had discussed a “decapitation strike” if Russia used nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied that such an option has ever been on the table, arguing that there are no targets in the neighboring country for such a strike.
Responding to the report about the “decapitation strike,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov interpreted it as “a threat to assassinate the head of the Russian state.”
“If such ideas are really being considered, those involved must carefully think about the possible consequences,” he said at the time.
In May 2023, Russia accused Ukraine – which has received massive aid from the US – of attempting to assassinate Putin in the Kremlin using a drone strike, although the aircraft were neutralized.
While Ukraine has denied any involvement, Blinken said at the time that Washington had no prior warning of the raid, adding that Kiev was free to defend itself in any way it saw fit.
