- Biden has called Putin a war criminal and called for a war crimes investigation into Russia.
- Rep. Ilhan Omar told Insider the US should support an investigation by the ICC by becoming a member.
- Omar and other lawmakers introduced a resolution Thursday calling on the US to join the ICC.
Rep. Ilhan Omar said it would be hypocritical for the US to support a war crimes investigation by the International Criminal Court without moving to become a member.
"To me, there is staggering evidence that Putin and Russian forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine. I believe we should fully support an investigation into those crimes, and the best way to do that is to support the body that will carry out that investigation, the International Criminal Court," Omar said in a statement to Insider.
"It would be staggeringly hypocritical to support an ICC investigation into Russia, while opposing the court's very existence as a non-member," she continued.
Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, introduced a resolution on Thursday calling for the US to become a member of the ICC, an international body based in The Hague, Netherlands, that investigates genocides, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.
The resolution came after President Joe Biden called Russian President Vladimir Putin a war criminal and called for a war crimes trial against him after reports of atrocities committed by Russian forces in Ukraine.
The New York Times reported earlier this week the Biden administration was debating how involved the US should be in an ICC investigation into Russia.