Charging Putin for potential war crimes is difficult, and any penalty hard to enforce

Soldiers walk amid destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sunday.

Rodrigo Abd / Rodrigo Abd

Editor’s Note: Please be aware that some of the images in this story are graphic.

Even before the outrage over hundreds of civilians reportedly killed in Bucha, Ukraine was accusing Russia of committing a number of war crimes, and many experts have backed those claims.

President Biden on Monday called for Russian President Vladimir Putin to face a war crimes trial.