Biden remembers Armenian genocide with seeming nod to Ukraine

President Joe Biden on Sunday issued a statement memorializing the Armenian genocide that included some phrasing that seemed to be indirectly referencing Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

"Let us redouble our efforts toward healing and building the better, more peaceful world that we wish for our children," Biden said in a statement Sunday. "A world where human rights are respected, where the evils of bigotry and intolerance do not mark our daily lives, and where people everywhere are free to pursue their lives in dignity and security."

April 24 is an important date for those who remember and mourn the Ottoman Empire's systematic killing of as many as 1.5 million Armenians. On April 24, 1915, Ottoman authorities began persecuting Armenians by arresting and then deporting community leaders in Constantinople. The persecution continued through 1917 and didn't fully end until the demise of the once-mighty Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I.

"As we reflect on the Armenian genocide, we renew our pledge to remain vigilant against the corrosive influence of hate in all its forms," Biden said. "We recommit ourselves to speaking out and stopping atrocities that leave lasting scars on the world."

The statement did not directly reference Russia's atrocities in Ukraine during its invasion, which Biden has called "genocide."

"It’s become clearer and clearer that Putin is just trying to wipe out the idea of being Ukrainian. The evidence is mounting. It looks different than last week," Biden said in Iowa earlier this month. “More evidence is coming out, literally, of the horrible things that the Russians have done in Ukraine. And we’re going to only learn more and more about the devastation."

In 2021, Biden became the first American president to describe the mass killings of Armenians as "genocide." American leaders had long been reluctant to make the designation, which the nation of Turkey has fought against tooth and nail.