President Biden Against Designating Russia as State Sponsor of Terrorism

President Joe Biden advised against designating Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism over the war in Ukraine despite Ukraine’s persistent pressure to do so since the start of the conflict.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, President Biden said “no” when asked whether he believes Russia should be branded a state sponsor of terrorism, something he was also urged to endorse by two US senators – Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham – last month in an effort to ramp up pressure on Moscow.

Earlier this year, Blumenthal and Graham also submitted a resolution in the US Senate requesting that State Secretary Antony Blinken declare Russia as a state supporter of terrorism, adding as a reference the war crimes committed in Bucha.

The Senate passed the non-binding resolution with a unanimous vote, which shows that both parties in Congress supported the idea, which brings to the fact that Congress itself can decide that Russia ought to be blacklisted as a state sponsor of terrorism without consulting the State Department

The Committee on Foreign Relations also looked over the resolution.

The US State Department is also apparently against the idea since it quietly approached congressional offices back in August, warning that the designation could seriously impact Washington’s remaining economic ties with Moscow and derail the Ukrainian grain deal.

“State sponsor of terrorism” designation is issued by the US State Department for countries that US believes to have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.

When issued, designation implies, among other things, a number of financial restrictions, controls over exports of dual-use items and a ban on defense exports and sales to the designated country.

Currently, only four countries are designated by the US as state sponsors of terrorism-North Korea, Iran, Cuba, and Syria.

Russia has prewarned the Biden administration that the designation would mark a point of no return in relations between the two countries.