In a rhetorical escalation, President Biden called Russian war crimes “genocide.”
Summary
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump both called Russian war crimes “genocide” in separate statements Wednesday.
- On Tuesday, President Biden equated Russia’s murders of Ukrainian civilians to genocide and on Wednesday said, “Yes, I called it genocide… it sure seems that way to me.”
- President Joe Biden announced the US would provide Ukraine with additional military assistance worth $800 million, including heavy artillery, helicopters, and armored personnel carriers.
- The US government has not yet committed to launching an inquiry to determine whether Russia has committed genocide in Ukraine.
- Ukraine claimed a Neptune anti-ship missile strike sunk Russia’s Black Sea flagship, the Moskva. The Russian government acknowledged their warship was crippled but blamed it on an accidental ammunition explosion.
- Also on Wednesday, the presidents of four of Ukraine’s neighbors visited Kyiv in a show of support.
- The leaders of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia demanded Russia be held accountable for war crimes it has perpetrated on the Ukrainian people.
- Politico reported the US is considering sending a top-level official to meet Zelenskyy, following in the footsteps of Britain’s Boris Johnson and other European leaders’ visits to Kyiv. Secretary of State Antony Blinken or Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin are thought to be likely contenders to make the trip.
- CNN told the story of one Ukrainian family that tried to take a boat to safety, before Russian rockets came raining down.
- Vox investigated Biden’s assessment that Russia is committing “genocide” in Ukraine. While Russian war crimes are evident, the evidence for genocide is less clear-cut.
- Fox News reported Putin has purged more than 100 FSB agents as scapegoats for their Ukraine invasion quagmire.
- The Wall Street Journal wrote that Russia was forced to abandon its Black Sea flagship, and claimed all sailors aboard were rescued.
- National Review summed up the apparent dissension within the White House on Biden’s “genocide” declaration: “Never mind, he’s speaking from the heart.”
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© Dominic Moore, 2022
