US President Joe Biden has made another serious on-stage gaffe, introducing Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky as "President Putin" at NATO.
Biden is set to hold his first solo press conference since November 2023, amid growing calls for him to end his reelection bid.
The 81-year-old has been under pressure to make way for someone younger to represent the Democratic Party in the upcoming presidential election, after a shambolic debate performance last month.
Biden - who defeated presumptive Republican candidate and incumbent Donald Trump in 2020 - has refused to budge, saying he is the best-qualified to beat the convicted fraudster in November.
But there are concerns his cognitive abilities have slipped over the past few years.
The latest faux pas happened at the NATO summit in Washington DC on Friday (NZ time) when he accidentally referred to Volodymyr Zelensky as "President Putin" - mixing up the Ukrainian president with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who ordered his country's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, right, reacts after being introduced as Russia's President Vladimir Putin by Joe Biden during a Ukraine Compact event at the NATO. Photo: AFP
Biden made the mistake on stage in front of audibly shocked delegates, BBC News reported. He stepped away from the microphone before realising his mistake.
"President Putin? He's going to beat President Putin," he said. "President Zelensky. I'm so worried about beating Putin, we've got to worry about it. Anyway."
Zelensky took it in stride, walking up to the microphone and saying, "I'm better."
Biden replied, "You are a hell of a lot better."
