The Kremlin condemned on Wednesday remarks made by U.S. President Joe Biden, in which he referred for the first time to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as a "war criminal," deeming those statements "unacceptable and unforgivable." Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that his country considers the remarks "unacceptable and unforgivable, from the head of a state whose bombs have killed hundreds of thousands of people around the world," as reported by the TASS news agency.
On Wednesday, Biden stated while discussing Vladimir Putin: "I think he is a war criminal," referring to the military operation in Ukraine. He added, "Russian forces have bombed hospitals and taken doctors hostage." White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki mentioned that Biden was "speaking from the heart" after watching footage on television of "the barbaric acts being carried out by a ruthless dictator invading another country." Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Moscow of indiscriminately attacking civilians, while Russia describes its military actions in Ukraine as a "special operation" and denies targeting civilians.
