Thermobaric weapons. Targeting hospitals. Case against Putin as a war criminal is strong. On Monday, Karim Khan, prosecutor for the International Criminal Court announced that he would begin an investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Russia in Ukraine. "I have decided to proceed with opening an investigation into the situation in Ukraine, as rapidly as possible," Khan said. "I am satisfied that there is reasonable basis to believe that both alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed in Ukraine." He continued, “Given the expansion of the conflict in recent days, it is my intention that this investigation will also encompass any new alleged crimes falling within the jurisdiction of my office that are committed by any party to the conflict on any part of the territory of Ukraine.” The case against the Russians and Vladimir Putin is strong. They are in violation of international law for attacking Ukraine without provocation. While they argue they are acting in self-defense, such arguments are absurd on their face. Even were they not, experts note that Russia’s actions have been grotesquely disproportionate. Further, attacks on innocent civilians are clearly war crimes as are the use of prohibited weaponry that Russia has already been accused of using during their invasion – including cluster and thermobaric munitions. In an address on Monday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy argued that because Russia has attacked civilian areas and done so intentionally, “there will definitely be an international tribunal for this crime – it is a violation of all conventions. No one in the world will forgive you for killing peaceful Ukrainian people.” Intentional attacks against Ukraine The concerns that violence committed to date will be compounded in the days to come as Russia increases the intensity and the viciousness of its attacks are growing. With that in mind, on Thursday, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) will begin debating the alleged Russian abuses. Ukraine seeks from the group the establishment of an independent commission to assess the allegations against the Russians, from 2014 through the latest escalation of Russia’s invasion of its neighbor. The United States has supported this effort. On Tuesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the UNHRC, “Russian strikes are hitting schools, hospitals and residential buildings. They are destroying critical infrastructure, which provides millions of people across Ukraine with drinking water, gas to keep them from freezing to death, and electricity. Civilian buses, cars and even ambulances have been shelled. Russia is doing this every day, across Ukraine.” With reports of discontent growing across Russian society with regard to the invasion – from street protests to statements by athletes, artists and even government officials – the scrutiny and punishments any human rights violations might bring could produce further dissent. They should. Putin has embarked all of Russia on the path to infamy. Increasingly, the victims of his unprovoked aggression are not just the people of Ukraine but those of Russia as well. The 'TikTok War' Further, this is clearly a new kind of war, the first of the social media age. It has been called the TikTok War because so much of it is being recorded on camera phones that are ubiquitous across Ukraine. This will be a powerful tool in bearing witness against Russian soldiers who are guilty of crimes and against the senior officials, notably Putin, who have ordered this war and condoned its tactics. This war, in fact, could produce more documentation of such abuses and the price being paid by innocent civilians than any other in memory. Those cameras are a weapon against evil. They represent a tool by which Putin, his generals and the troops doing his bidding will be held accountable. Should the International Criminal Court and the U.N. Human Rights Council conduct the investigations that seem likely, the images produced along with other documentation are likely to lead to severe consequences for Putin and his army. Further, the consequences will not just be in the eyes of the law – which could produce severe sentences and make it impossible for Putin ever again to leave Russia – but also in the court of public opinion worldwide. Putin has been transformed by his own hand from a cunning and dangerous head of state to one of the great villains in modern history. Thanks to the efforts to chronicle his abuses, the judgment of society is a sentence for life and beyond, for history. It is also, American audiences will note, one that will haunt his supporters and defenders in this country, whose dangerous policies and cynicism are revealed daily now as Putin pursues his immoral and horrific path. David Rothkopf is a member of the USA TODAY Board of Contributors, host of "Deep State Radio," and CEO of TRG Media and podcasting company specializing in public policy issues. Follow him on Twitter: @djrothkopf
Putin is a war criminal but will never stand trial, at least not while living. He's going to stay holed up, never leaving the country again, never out of his inner circle. Should Russia fall his own people will just string his ass up, they aren't big on trials. The question is how many die during the process of Russia collapsing? I can't see him just giving up without a scorched earth event.
One would not expect me to say anything good about Biden, and I shall not disappoint. The thing that is rather unseemly about his state of the union address is the way he co-opted the Ukraine situation for his own greedy political purposes and to veneer-over all of his failures on the home front. I think 80% of it is okay and to be expected. Most people are cheering for Ukraine and standing up to Putin is always a good thing to cheer. But the last 20% where he is doing a victory lap while the Ukrainians are the ones doing the fighting and their situation is not assured at all, is cheap and cheesy. This thing can and probably will go south fast and - as Americans we know the routine- it will immediately degenerate into a "who lost Ukraine" ugly-fest routine. We are war mongers if we go in, but shit-bums if we don't save the world. It will get ugly. Biden is trying to walk a path that I would not walk. I think that if you are - in the end- going to tell a people who have been devastated while the world stood by- that "Americans will not be going into Ukraine- then you need to tone down the victory lap shiite while they are the ones in the trenches. Instead he bodysurfs off of the groundswell of support for Ukraine and their bravery, while standing prepared to list a hundred reasons why it is their fight not America's when it goes tits up. Some of the reasons are actually valid. Just knock off the cheap exploitation of the moments that are going well. If ever there was/were a situation where "success has a thousand fathers, but failure is an orphan" Ukraine will be exhibit A.
Lets just hope all the Putin "disinformation" doesn't turn out to be right like the COVID "disinformation" did.
So funny, well done Ireland. Also to be fair the ambassador who can't quite pull of a Bagdad1Bob2 with a straight face. Set to to play.
Day 8 or 9, depending on how you look at it and Kyiv still stands! However, this is where we are entering into the slog phase. The Russians have seemingly become adverse to ground battles and have retreated to lobbing missiles and rockets, a la Aleppo, to drive the Ukrainians out of their cities. That’s just dirty. The Ukrainians have to develop a strategy stop the rockets or ploy to get the Russians to change tactics. Dirty, filthy Russians.
You are one of the largest promoters of disinformation talking points from Putin and Covid Deniers. You go do you, KremlinBoy™