Is Putin a war criminal?

President Biden caused a stir in the media last week when he called Russian President Vladimir Putin “a war criminal.” Mr. Biden’s statement was apparently made to capitalize on the government’s and the American media’s monolithic anti-Russian messaging.

Is Mr. Putin a war criminal? In a word: No.

Here is the backstory.

Criminals are persons who have been properly convicted by a court that has jurisdiction over them and the place of their alleged crime and where the crimes were written down and accepted prior to their alleged criminal behavior. Mr. Putin is not among them.