U.S. envoy to NATO: No American policy of regime change in Russia

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the Royal Castle, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Warsaw, Poland, March 26, 2022. REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. envoy to NATO said on Sunday that the United States does not have a policy of regime change in Russia, in the latest effort to clarify President Joe Biden's statement that Russian President Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power."

Julianne Smith sought to contextualize Biden's remarks in Poland on Saturday, saying they followed a day of speaking with Ukrainian refugees. Russia's month-old invasion has driven a quarter of Ukraine's population of 44 million from their homes.