Biden says Russian leader Putin ‘is a war criminal’ for Ukraine attacks

Biden says Russian leader Putin ‘is a war criminal’ for Ukraine attacks

President said Wednesday that he believes Russian leader "is a war criminal" for his attacks on Ukraine. It was the first time Biden has publicly branded Putin with that phrase. Biden's comment came hours Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other top officials who two weeks ago opened an investigation into possible war crimes by Russia. And it came after Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., earlier Wednesday a war criminal. Kelly cited Russia's attacks on "hospitals, maternity wards, apartment buildings" in Ukraine and its military's "direct fire on civilians." In an exchange with a reporter, Biden was asked, "Mr. President, after everything we've seen, are you ready to call Putin a war criminal." Biden initially replied, "No." The reporter then asked if Biden will "go to Poland," where many Ukraine refugees have fled the Russian invasion. Biden then said, "Did you ask me whether I should call?" "Oh, I think he is a war criminal," Biden said. White House press secretary Jen Psaki later said Biden was speaking from his heart from what he's seen on the news, which is "barbaric actions by a brutal dictator." Psaki noted that there is a separate legal process to determine whether Putin has violated international