Pentagon to Help Gather Evidence of Russian War Crimes in Ukraine

The Pentagon on Monday accused Russian forces of committing war crimes in Ukraine and said it would help gather evidence of them, as it accused the Kremlin of carrying out indiscriminate attacks as part of an intentional strategy in the conflict.

"We certainly see clear evidence that Russian forces are committing war crimes and we are helping with the collecting of evidence of that," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told a news briefing.

"But there's investigative processes that are going to go on, and we're going to let that happen. We're going to contribute to that investigative process. As for what would come out of that, that's not a decision that the Pentagon leadership would make."

Moscow has drawn worldwide condemnation over some of its invasion tactics, including the shelling of a maternity hospital in Mariupol, and of shelters filled with hundreds of Ukrainian civilians, some of them children.

Fears are high that an escalation of the conflict could see Russian President Vladimir Putin authorize use of chemical and/or biological weapons with horrific results.

U.S. President Joe Biden has himself dubbed Putin a war criminal.