Biden: "Putin is a war criminal, must be tried" Additional sanctions also announced

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] U.S. President Joe Biden has called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to be brought to a war crimes trial in connection with the discovery of hundreds of civilian bodies buried in mass graves in Bucha, Ukraine. He also announced plans for stronger additional sanctions targeting Russia.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and others, President Biden told reporters at the White House on the 4th (local time), "You have seen what happened in Bucha," and stated, "President Putin is a war criminal." He added, "We need to collect all the details so that a war crimes trial can take place," emphasizing, "This man (Putin) is brutal, and what happened in Bucha is so shocking, everyone has seen it."

He also said, "We will impose more sanctions on Russia," and "We must continue to provide Ukraine with the weapons necessary to keep fighting." However, President Biden did not specify what additional sanctions the U.S. is pursuing. Possibilities include secondary sanctions on countries continuing trade with Russia or sanctions targeting Russian minerals, transportation, and financial sectors.

In particular, President Biden’s call for bringing Putin to a war crimes trial has drawn attention to whether legal proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which handles disputes between nations, or the International Criminal Court (ICC), which deals with individual war crimes, will be formally initiated.

On the same day, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Union (EU) Commission, stated in a press release that the EU had previously established a joint investigative team with Ukraine to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity and to collect evidence.

Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, also criticized, saying, "Reports from Bucha and other areas raise serious concerns about the possibility of war crimes, serious violations of international humanitarian law, and grave breaches of international human rights law."

Earlier, in Bucha, which was recaptured by Ukrainian forces, bodies dressed as civilians and mass graves believed to be victims executed by Russian troops were found in various locations. The day before, Iryna Venediktova, Ukraine’s Prosecutor General, announced on Facebook that "at least 410 Ukrainian civilian bodies have been recovered from villages around Kyiv where Russian troops have withdrawn."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also visited the area and called the findings evidence of Russia’s "massacre," urging the West to impose stronger sanctions against Russia. Meanwhile, Russia denied allegations of mass civilian killings, claiming, "The released footage was staged by the Ukrainian government for Western media."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.