President Joe Biden (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin.Photo: Joshua Roberts/Getty; Mikhail Svetlov/Getty
PresidentJoe Bidenaccused Russia’s PresidentVladimir Putinof committing war crimes in the ongoinginvasion of Ukraine.
“The president’s remarks speak for themselves,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said after Biden spoke at an event about preventing violence against women.
The president, Psaki said, was “speaking from the heart” and “responding to what he has seen on television.”
Biden’s comment comes as U.S. politicians increasingly unite in condemnation of the Russian forces and urge greater response, even as the White House says some of the possible moves — such as air combat with Russia to protect Ukrainians from bombs — risk widening the war.
“War criminal” is not the first denunciation Biden has made of Putin. He previously described the Russian autocratas a “killer"who does “not have a soul.” (According toThe Washington Post, Putin responded to the “killer” label somewhat mockingly, invoking an expression that translates to “I know you are, but what am I?")
Jan Husar/SOPA Images/Shutterstock
Biden had said it’s “clear” Russia istargeting civilians in its brutal attacksbut previously stopped short of saying war crimes had been committed.
“We are following it very closely,” Biden said earlier this month, according to CNN. “It’s too early to say that.”
Similarly, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations gave a stark warning to Russian forces during an emergency session of the General Assembly in early March.
“Your leaders are lying to you. Do not commit war crimes,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield said. “Do everything you can to put down your weapons and leave Ukraine.”
“We need you right now,” Zelenskyy said, appearing via video feed in a green military-style shirt, which has become a trademark of his since the war started Feb. 24. “Remember Pearl Harbor, [the] terrible morning of December 1941 when your sky was black from the planes attacking you. Just remember. Remember Sept. 11 — a terrible day in 2001 when people tried to turn your cities … into battlefields. When innocent people were attacked.”
He continued: “Every night for three weeks now … Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death for thousands of people.”
A week into the war, a prosecutor with the International Criminal Court said he planned toopen an investigationinto alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“I have decided to proceed with opening an investigation into the Situation in Ukraine, as rapidly as possible,” Karim Khan said in a statement March 1. “I am satisfied that there is a reasonable basis to believe that both alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed in Ukraine.”
Damage at Mariupol’s children’s hospital.Evgeniy Maloletka/AP/Shutterstock
Russian attacks continue three weeks after their forces launched a large-scale invasion on Feb. 24 — the first major land conflict in Europe in decades.
With NATO forces massing in the region around Ukraine, various countries have also pledged aid or military support to the resistance. Ukraine PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyycalled for peace talks — so far unsuccessful — while urging his country to fight back.
Putin insists Ukraine has historic ties to Russia and he is acting in the best security interests of his country. Zelenskyy vowed not to bend.
“Nobody is going to break us, we’re strong, we’re Ukrainians,“he told the European Unionin a speech in the early days of the fighting, adding, “Life will win over death. And light will win over darkness.”
source: people.com
