Speaker Pelosi: Russia is state sponsor of terrorism, Putin is coward

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi supports Ukraine's request for Congress to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Pelosi made a corresponding statement in an interview with MSNBC, the text of which is posted on the Speaker’s website.

Asked if she supports the request, Pelosi said: “Absolutely.  I've been advocating that for a while.  If Russia is not listed as a state sponsor of terrorism, tear up the list.”

She noted that the leader of a nuclear power invaded another country, threatened the use of nuclear tactics, turned his own soldiers into raping children in front of their mothers or raping mothers in front of their children, kidnapping children, etc. These acts of violence are outside the circle of civilized human behavior, the politician stressed.

“Putin is a coward.  He's fighting – instead of fighting a war, he's fighting against civilians.  He's fighting against children.  He's using that as a weapon of war.  So I think, absolutely, that they should be on that list of state sponsored terrorists, and I'm hoping that will happen,” Pelosi said, noting that it's a discretion of the President to do that.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives stressed that such a decision would facilitate the imposition of sanctions on Russia, so, in her opinion, "it’s very important to do."

As reported, on May 3, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a request for the House of Representatives and the Senate to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Photo credit: ZACH GIBSON / MCT

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