Roger Waters Criticizes Joe Biden and NATO in New Interview

The interview grew heated

Roger Waters
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and guest Musical Guest Roger Waters during the June 21, 2022 show.
Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images

Lately, when Roger Waters has been in the news, it’s for his criticism of the Israeli government or expressing his frustration with his press coverage as compared to that of The Weeknd. In a recent interview with CNN, Waters took on another adversary — in this case, the foreign policy of the Biden administration. Which is to say that he dubbed Biden a war criminal. And he didn’t stop there.

The interview was conducted by CNN’s Michael Smerconish, who met with Waters in Philadelphia and subsequently posted the uncut interview on YouTube.

Smerconish brought up a visual used on Waters’s current tour: a montage of images of war criminals, including an image of Biden. Waters argued that Biden was “fueling the war in the Ukraine.” Waters went on to argue that NATO was responsible for some of the conditions that led to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Waters also went on to defend China’s plans to enircle Taiwan. “Taiwan is part of China, and that’s been wholly accepted by the whole of the international community since 1948!” Waters said — and went on to state that Smerconish was “believing your side’s propaganda.”

Things took a contentious turn at the end, with Waters repeatedly telling Smerconish that he should read more, and Smerconish criticizing Waters for giving the Chinese government too much leeway on various matters. It’s an engaging 28 minutes, but whether it’ll change anyone’s opinions is up for debate.

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