Biden Visits Ukraine Border, Comparing Russian Invasion to 'Tiananmen'

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] U.S. President Joe Biden, who visited the Ukraine-Poland border on the 25th (local time), compared Russia's invasion of Ukraine to the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident in China.

President Biden, visiting Europe for the first time since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, made this remark during a meeting with the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division deployed in Rzesz?w, Poland, 80 km from the Ukrainian border, and relief organization officials assisting refugees.

He highly praised the Ukrainian people's resistance against Russia, stating, "If we talk about what happened in Tiananmen Square, this is the square of the incident that occurred in Tiananmen Square." On June 4, 1989, Chinese authorities deployed martial law troops to disperse students, workers, and citizens conducting a sit-in protest demanding democratization in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, using armored vehicles and opening fire. Thousands were killed or injured as a result.

President Biden referred to Russian President Vladimir Putin as "honestly a war criminal," adding, "He probably fits the legal definition of that as well."

He also emphasized to U.S. troops, "You are in the middle of a war between democracy and dictatorship," and "What you are doing is truly significant."

On the previous day in Brussels, President Biden attended consecutive summits of NATO, the Group of Seven (G7), and the European Union (EU), and stated that Russia, which invaded Ukraine, should be expelled from the Group of Twenty (G20). He strongly warned that if Russia uses chemical weapons, there will be a response.

On the 26th, President Biden is scheduled to hold talks with Polish President Andrzej Duda and visit a refugee reception center for Ukrainians.