Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Mark Milley on Wednesday characterized Russia's most recent attacks on Ukrainian civilian sites as a "war crime."
While speaking to reporters in Brussels, Milley said: "Russia has deliberately struck civilian infrastructure with the purpose of harming civilians."
Milley then added: "[The Russians] have targeted the elderly, the women, and the children of Ukraine. Indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilian targets is a war crime in the international rules of war."
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a series of airstrikes in Ukraine that reportedly resulted in at least 19 deaths and more than 100 people injured.
The Washington Post reported that Putin viewed the attacks as a "massive strike."
Speaking alongside Milley, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Russia's attacks on civilians "reveal the malice of Putin’s war of choice" and represent a "grim preview of a future in which the appetites of aggressive autocrats outweigh the rights of peaceful states."
The United Nations' human rights office has already labeled the airstrikes as "particularly shocking" and akin to potential war crimes, according to reports.
The Geneva Conventions involve four globally recognized treaties and three additional protocols which comprise the international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war.
It extensively covers the basic rights of wartime prisoners (civilians and military personnel), establishes protections for the wounded and sick, and offers protections for the civilians in and around a war zone. Also, the Geneva Convention document defines the rights and protections afforded to noncombatants.
Putin claimed the strikes were in response to an explosion that reportedly destroyed a section of the Kerch Strait Bridge, which connects Russia to annexed Crimea.
It also represents a symbol of Moscow's supposed hold on the region, according to reports.
While speaking to Newsmax on Tuesday, Alexey Goncharenko, a Ukrainian Parliament member, declared that Ukraine's army was on the verge of defeating the Russian troops, and potentially ending Putin's regime.
"[Putin] started this terror attack, killing civilians," said Goncharenko, while appearing on "American Agenda." Putin "can't do anything [against] the Ukraine army, so he's taking revenge on women and children" occupying Ukraine's playgrounds, universities, and hospitals."
"I think this is a very unique moment we're in now. ... With long-range missiles now, and tanks, we can finish everything in weeks, because one, two, or three more military defeats, and Putin's regime would not survive," said Goncharenko. "Because Ukraine is winning this war."
Milley and Austin were in Brussels for meetings with the Ukraine Defense Contract Group, a consortium of 50-plus countries that formed shortly after the Russia-Ukraine war began on Feb. 24.
According to The Hill, Ukraine has requested additional military resources to combat Russia, such as Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), ammunition, air missiles, and artillery for howitzers.
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