After calling Vladimir Putin a “butcher”, the President of the United States again used a very strong word against the Russian invader in Ukraine.
Joe Biden appeared to accuse the Russian army of "genocide" in Ukraine on Tuesday, using this term for the first time to describe the situation in the country invaded by Moscow.
"Your family's budget, your ability to refuel, none of that should depend on a dictator declaring war and committing genocide on the other side of the world," the president said. American during a trip to Iowa devoted to the fight against inflation.
On March 16, already, during a reception at the White House, Joe Biden had made a remarkable media outing.
As he came to greet the crowd, Joe Biden had launched to journalists: "I think he (Putin, editor's note) is a war criminal".
"We consider unacceptable and unforgivable such rhetoric from the head of state, whose bombs have killed hundreds of thousands of people around the world," retorted the spokesman for the Russian presidency Dmitry Peskov, quoted by the TASS and Ria Novosti agencies.
Gas price hike caused by Putin, says Biden
In the United States, the rise in consumer prices in March reached its fastest pace since December 1981, at 8.5% over one year, according to the consumer price index (CPI) published on Tuesday by the labor department.
Joe Biden lamented the additional inflationary spike caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, assuring that "70% of the price increase in March comes from (Vladimir) Putin's gasoline price hike".
The Labor Department said in its statement that “the gasoline index rose 18.3% in March (compared to February) and accounted for more than half of the general price increase over one month”.
"Putin's invasion of Ukraine has driven up gasoline and food prices around the world," said the Democratic president, in front of mountains of wheat and tractors.
The Republican opposition, in particular, criticizes Joe Biden for having an economic policy that fuels inflation.
