Ukraine war: Vladimir Putin a ‘murderous dictator, pure thug’, says Joe Biden

US President Joe Biden on Thursday called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a “pure thug,” a day after he flatly called the Russian President a war criminal at a White House event.

Speaking at a St. Patrick’s Day event on Thursday, the 79-year-old US President described the Russian President as a “murderous dictator, a pure thug who is waging an immoral war against the people of Ukraine.”

Also read | ‘They’re lying’: Journalist detained for protest on TV slams Russian media

“Putin is paying a big price for his aggression, and they are part of the reason the cost is going so high,” the US President said, vowing to make Russia pay.

President Biden also went on to praise Ireland for “stepping up” efforts to aid Ukraine in the war against Russia.

Also read | Joe Biden, Xi Jinping to discuss US-China ties, Russia-Ukraine war on Friday

“Everybody talks about how Germany have stepped up and changed their notions about being more leaning forward, and they have, and so has Ireland. A neutral country, Ireland has stepped up, and they’re taking the hit for what they’re doing,” Biden said at the event.

The 79-year-old went on to talk about the US’ ties with Ireland, and said that the relationship between the two countries had taken on “an even more intense and cooperative forum than it ever has because of Ireland’s neutrality.”

Also read | War crime? Russia repeatedly used banned cluster munitions on Ukrainians

Biden’s recent comments on Putin and Russia’s alleged war crimes in Ukraine come amid increasing international condemnation of Russian attacks on civilians.

While Western leaders had initially stopped short of using the term ‘war crime’ to describe Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians, calls to investigate alleged Russian war crimes have intensified over the past few days, and several international investigations have also been launched to probe the same.