It was the sharpest condemnation of Putin’s actions by any US official since the war in Ukraine began three weeks ago. Biden has previously refrained from calling the atrocities documented on the ground in Ukraine “war crimes,” citing ongoing international and US investigations.
But speaking to reporters at an unrelated event Wednesday, Biden attached a designation to the Russian leader.
“I think he is a war criminal,” Biden said after the White House speech.
The departure from the previous administration position came after an emotional address to Congress by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who showed a video showing Ukrainians suffering under Russian onslaught. Zelensky asked US lawmakers and Biden for more defense assistance, including a no-fly zone and fighter jets.
Hours later, Biden responded in his own address, talking about new U.S. military aid to Ukraine, including anti-aircraft and anti-tank systems, weapons and drones, but not granting Zelenskiy’s requests.
Nevertheless, Biden acknowledged the horrors on the ground.
“We have seen reports of Russian forces holding hundreds of doctors and patients hostage at the largest hospital in Mariupol,” Biden said. “These are atrocities. They revolt the world. And the whole world is united in our support for Ukraine and our determination to make Putin pay a very high price.”
Only a few hours after that, Biden answered the question that Putin was a war criminal. Biden initially said no, but immediately returned to the group of reporters to clarify the issue. When asked again if Putin was a war criminal, he answered in the affirmative.
Officials, including Biden, have previously avoided talking about war crimes being committed in Ukraine, citing an ongoing investigation into the use of the term. Other world leaders have not been as discreet, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who alleged war crimes last week. The International Criminal Court in The Hague has also launched an investigation into war crimes. And on Tuesday, the US Senate unanimously demanded an international investigation into war crimes. US Permanent Representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said last week that Russia’s actions against the Ukrainian people “constitute war crimes.” This marked the first time that a senior US official has directly accused Moscow of war crimes since the attack on Ukraine began last month.
Last week in Poland, Vice President Kamala Harris called for an international investigation into war crimes and made it clear that she believed the atrocities were continuing. She said deliberately targeting civilians would be considered a war crime.
After Biden presented his assessment, the White House said the administration’s war crimes investigation would continue.
“The president’s remarks speak for themselves,” spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. She said Biden “spoke from the heart.”
While the term “war crimes” is often used colloquially – as Biden seems to have done on Wednesday – they do have a legal definition that could be used in potential prosecutions. This includes the Geneva Convention, which defines the deliberate targeting of civilians as a war crime.
However, hard evidence is needed to prosecute a war crime. And in order to hold Russian officials accountable, they will need to travel outside the country.
However, the official definition of war crimes, backed up by evidence, will continue to provide the West with a symbolic tool to frame Putin’s actions in Ukraine.
As the Russian campaign intensifies, there is increasing pressure on Biden to help the beleaguered Ukrainians more. On Wednesday, a theater in Mariupol where civilians were hiding was blown up in the latest example of indiscriminate shelling by Russia.
The pressure is likely to escalate after Zelenskiy’s dramatic appeal to lawmakers for more help. He compared what is happening in Ukraine to Pearl Harbor and 9/11 and said, “We need you right now” to offer more support.
Biden watched the performance from the library of his private residence and later called it a “compelling” and “meaningful” performance.
“Putin brings terrible, terrifying devastation and horror to Ukraine, bombing residential buildings, maternity hospitals, hospitals,” he said later. “I mean, it’s terrible.
Biden plans to travel to Brussels next week for an emergency meeting of NATO leaders, where he hopes to demonstrate Western unity in the face of Russian aggression.
This story has been supplemented by an additional report.