Joe Biden, in his first broadcast interview since leaving office, defended his delayed withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race, claiming his administration’s success made it "hard to stop."

The 82-year-old, speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today program, also accused President Donald Trump of "modern-day appeasement" in his approach to Russia and criticized his foreign policy as un-American.

Pressed by BBC journalist Nick Robinson on why he waited until July 21, 2024, to end his reelection bid after a faltering debate against Trump on June 27, Biden insisted, "I don’t think it would have mattered."

"We left at a time when we had a good candidate. She was fully funded," he said, referring to Kamala Harris, who lost to Trump in November after a 106-day campaign.

Biden claimed his administration’s success made it difficult for him to step aside earlier and give Harris a stronger chance at victory.

"We had become so successful in our agenda, it was hard to say, 'I’m gonna stop now,'" he said.

Biden admitted he initially planned to serve one term in 2020 to transition the Democratic Party to a new generation.

"I meant what I said when I started, that I’m preparing to hand this to the next generation…but things moved so quickly, and it made it difficult to walk away,” he continued.

Democrats have criticized the late exit, arguing that an earlier withdrawal might have altered the election outcome.

The pre-recorded interview, conducted Monday in Wilmington to mark the 80th anniversary of World War II’s end in Europe, saw Biden struggle with long pauses, whispers, and mumbled responses, as he had throughout his presidency.

He avoided mentioning Trump by name, but sharply blasted his successor’s foreign policy, particularly his comments on annexing Canada, Greenland, and the Panama Canal, and proposed renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

"What the hell’s going on here? What president ever talks like that? That’s not who we are,” Biden said. "We’re about freedom, democracy, opportunity, not about confiscation."

Biden expressed “grave concern” over U.S.-Europe relations under Trump, warning that a breakdown in post-World War II alliances "would change the modern history of the world."

He said he feared allies would question America’s reliability, asking, “Can I rely on the United States? Are they going to be there?"

"I fear our allies around the world are going to begin to doubt whether we’re going to stay where we’ve always been in the last 80 years," he said.

On Russia’s war in Ukraine, Biden warned Trump’s suggestion that Kyiv concede territory, including Crimea, to secure peace "modern-day appeasement."

"He [Vladimir Putin] believes it [Russia] has historical rights to Ukraine,” he said, arguing it's "foolish" to think Putin would stop if given land.

"That anyone who thinks he is going to stop is just foolish,” Biden continued. "I don’t understand how they fail to understand there is strength in alliances. There’s benefits. It saves us money overall."

Biden also criticized a February 2024 Oval Office meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as "beneath America."

"We gave them everything they needed to provide for their independence, and we were prepared to respond, more aggressively, if Putin moved again,” he said, defending his own Ukraine policy.

Trump’s communications director, Steven Cheung, blasted Biden’s performance, saying:

"Joe Biden is a complete disgrace to this country and the office he occupied. He has clearly lost all mental faculties and his handlers thought it’d be a good idea for him to do an interview and incoherently mumble his way through every answer."

Cheung added, "Sadly, this feels like abuse."

Biden maintains he could have defeated Trump in a 2024 rematch, telling USA Today before leaving office, "I thought I could have won."

Polls, however, indicated a likely landslide loss.

Reflecting on Trump’s first 100 days back in office, Biden said, “I’ll let history judge that. I don’t see anything that was triumphant.

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