Political and Legislative
Biden Calls Putin a War Criminal
President Biden’s condemnation of Russian President Vladimir Putin as “a war criminal” marked a dramatic shift in how the U.S. talks about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
To officially affix the “war crimes” label to a country’s actions involves a vigorous, often decades-long legal process, and investigators are already beginning to look at Russia’s conduct.
But experts say the president’s blunt statement to reporters on Wednesday, after resisting using the term for weeks, could serve to more forcefully galvanize the international community toward further isolating Moscow and raise the cost for Russian officials complicit in its war against Ukraine.
