Eh, don’t know if I quite agree with that one. In this case, silence is tacit approval. Saying you’re neutral when a country is committing genocide is the same as endorsing it, full stop. That’s where he tripped up and why the backlash.

Why wouldn’t he say he’s against it, unless he was worried about offending the people who are committing the atrocities, and people do not want to associate with someone like that.