‘Russia is the problem, not Ukraine’: Sen. Graham Urges Action Against Putin To Secure Peace
Leading US Senator Lindsey Graham on Thursday appealed to the Senate leadership, as well as his fellow senate colleagues, urging them to “get ready to act” to punish Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin for stalling peace talks with Ukraine.
“We have sat on the sidelines too long. We have watched too many people get slaughtered by Putin,” Graham told the Senate floor, Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent reports.
The move comes as US officials appear increasingly impatient with Putin, as realizations grow that the Russian leader, rather than Ukraine, is the biggest obstacle to peace.
“Russia is the problem, not Ukraine. Ukraine didn’t invade Russia; Russia invaded Ukraine. We need moral clarity on all these issues,” Graham told Senate leadership. “Putin, in my view, is playing us all,” he added.
Graham went on to urge his colleagues to apply “moral clarity” when it comes to Russia and Ukraine. “Russia is the aggressor. Russia must end this bloodbath now,” he said, adding “Ukraine, like every other nation, is not perfect, but they have fought like tigers.”
Graham stated that he and his colleagues had already introduced a bill proposing new sanctions on Russia, including a 500% tariff on imported goods from countries that purchase Russian energy resources.
The US has previously imposed sanctions on Russia, but they haven’t worked the way they should, as the senator put it. “What we are doing in the Senate is a game-changer. It will affect China, which provides the most fuel to Putin’s war machine in a dramatic fashion,” he emphasized.
“We can stop the killing but do it in a way that we don’t have future wars because we made a mistake here. There are so many things going on in the world right now that are very dangerous,” he said, citing tensions with Iran, increasing threats from China, and others.
“It is now time to let the Chinese know: If you want to be a normal country, act normal,” he highlighted. If China “keeps supporting Putin and fueling his war machine, it will never have a normal relationship with the US Senate,” he said.
He then added: “Those days of buying cheap oil from Putin with impunity are coming to a close. We are going to act.”
As to the current state of peace talks, Graham went on to remind that President Trump had called for a 30-day ceasefire: Ukraine said yes; Russia said no.
Trump also urged Zelenskyy and Putin to go to Istanbul and meet to have direct talks. “I was over there… Zelenskyy went; Putin didn’t. So there was a call a couple of days ago between President Trump and Putin,” Graham added.
The Russians, he said, now are supposed to submit a terms sheet about what it takes to get a ceasefire. “That is supposed to happen in a few days. They are talking about going to the Vatican and having direct negotiations. I am for all of that, but I don’t know about how. I think most people feel like I do,” he said.
For Graham, the world has given Russia “plenty of opportunity to find an honorable and just end to this war. They are not interested, and they are not going to change until we up the ante.”
He concluded: “So we need moral clarity here. Putin is dragging this out. He believes he is winning on the battlefield. I don’t believe he is. He is defying every effort that has been earnest by President Trump to find a solution to this war.”
Graham’s hard-hitting “Russia sanctions bill” has already gained over 80 co-sponsors of both parties as of Thursday, May 22. Among them are both Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) as well as the minority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). The bill has yet to be brought to a vote.
Source: Alex Raufoglu