The US State Department has defended President Joe Biden’s accusation that Russia is committing genocide in Ukraine, saying its forces are trying to destroy the country and its civilian population.
Biden launched the accusation against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces for the first time on Tuesday, adding however that it would be up to the lawyers to decide whether Russia’s behavior actually qualifies as genocide.
“I’m going to predict that what President Biden called is ultimately what we’re probably going to find when we’re able to put all of this evidence together,” State Department number three Victoria Nuland said on CNN.
“Because what is happening on the ground is not an accident,” he said. “It is an intentional decision by Russia, by her forces to destroy Ukraine and its civilian population,” she added.
The UN convention to prevent genocide, dating from 1948, defines it as a crime “committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.”
Legal scholars are careful about using the word, and Western leaders are divided on accusing Russia of genocide. The Kremlin called Biden’s use of it “unacceptable.”
US diplomats have tried to downplay the impact of the president’s comments, saying he is primarily taking a “moral” position rather than a strictly legal one.
