Biden warned Putin of the consequences… and the growing demands for an international investigation into mass graves
US President Joe Biden issued a stern warning to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, against using chemical or tactical nuclear weapons in the wake of the losses he suffered in the war in Ukraine. “Don’t do it,” Biden told Putin in an interview with CBS. not do. Don’t do it.”
In response to a question about the reaction of the US government in the event of Moscow’s action, Biden said, “Of course I will not tell you.” The US president added, “There will be serious consequences.” “Consequences that will change the face of war unparalleled since World War II,” Biden added. “They (the Russians) will become more pariahs in the world than ever before,” he said.
Ukraine has recovered large areas in the east from occupied Russian forces in recent weeks, thanks to heavy weapons supplied by its Western allies. But Putin stressed that his war against his country’s pro-Western neighbor is proceeding according to plan. He said, “The operational plan does not require a change… We are not in a hurry,” stressing that “the Russian army occupies more lands.”
Following the discovery of mass graves around the city of Izyum in eastern Ukraine, the Czech Republic, which currently holds the presidency of the European Union, called on Saturday for the establishment of an international war crimes tribunal. On Friday, the United Nations Office of Human Rights said it plans to send investigators to Izium, while John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, described the reports as “disgusting.”
French President Emmanuel Macron also condemned what he described as “atrocities” committed in the city of Izium, while US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken considered that Russia was behaving “appallingly” and most likely committed war crimes.
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