How have we reached a point where Vladimir Putin accepts the U.S. election result before the U.S. president? The Russian president has finally extended his begrudging congratulations to President-elect Joe Biden, leaving President Donald Trump as the last major global leader not to acknowledge his defeat in last month’s election. The Kremlin had said it would wait for the official results of the election before contacting Biden—presumably, Monday’s Electoral College vote was enough. In a statement, the Kremlin said: “Putin wished the president-elect every success and expressed confidence that Russia and the United States... could, despite their differences, really help to solve the many problems and challenges facing the world.” Even after the official results, and his campaign’s resolute failure to mount any serious legal challenge against them, Trump continues to deny that he lost the election. Putin’s acknowledgement comes before an acknowledgement from many top Republican members of Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.