President Joe Biden on Friday urged his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to take steps to stem cyberattacks against U.S. entities from Russia, the White House said.
In phone talks, Biden "underscored the need for Russia to take action to disrupt ransomware groups operating in Russia and emphasized that he is committed to continued engagement on the broader threat posed by ransomware," according to the White House.
Biden also reiterated that his administration "will take any necessary action" to defend American people and the country's infrastructure in the face of the continuing cyberattacks.
The conversation comes after the two leaders held a face-to-face meeting in Geneva last month.
Ongoing cyberattacks by criminals based in Russia "have impacted the United States and other countries around the world," Biden told Putin in their latest talks.
Colonial Pipeline Co. was forced to temporarily shut down a major U.S. oil pipeline system in May due to a cyberattack by the ransomware group DarkSide.
While U.S.-Russia relations have been rocky for several years over matters such as Moscow's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, its alleged meddling in U.S. elections and suspected poisoning and jailing of Putin critic Alexei Navalny, Biden told reporters after the phone talks that the two leaders have set up a means of communication "on a regular basis" to discuss events impacting their respective countries.
