As Russian President Vladimir Putin began an attack on Ukraine Thursday, members of the House and Senate in both parties condemned Russia’s aggression and called for crippling sanctions in response.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine marked the biggest attack by one state against another on the European continent since World War II.
The Senate issued a statement of support for Ukraine before departing for its President’s Day recess but failed to agree on a sanctions package against Russia prior to leaving Washington. But members of the House and Senate issued statements calling for a strong response against Putin late Thursday and early Friday.
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Sen. Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a statement that the unprovoked attack should “mark a historical shift in how the world views and deals with the despot in Moscow.”
The New Jersey Democrat called for the United States to uphold its responsibility to implement “maximum costs” on Putin.
Sen. Rob Portman, one of the senators who led the statement of support for Ukraine, said he condemns Putin’s actions in “the strongest possible terms.”
“This violation of the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation is unprovoked, is a flagrant violation of international law, and will result in senseless loss of life,” Portman said in a statement. “This is a foreign policy crisis not just for Ukraine, but for the United States and all freedom-loving countries around the globe. It has already begun to destabilize Eastern Europe in ways not seen since World War II and started a humanitarian crisis. It is absolutely vital that the United States immediately take decisive action to support Ukraine and our NATO allies in Eastern Europe.”
In a joint statement, the Republican and Democratic co-chairs of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus — which includes Reps. Marcy Kaptur, Brian Fitzpatrick, Andy Harris, and Mike Quigley — said Putin’s actions are a “reprehensible violation of international law.”
“Together, the United States and our allies must unleash crippling sanctions against Russia, and swiftly bolster Ukraine’s military capabilities,” they said.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said in a statement, “Putin has chosen war.”
“A massive Russian invasion of Ukraine has begun,” Schiff said. “As President Zelensky said this evening, the people of Ukraine want peace and the right to determine their own future. They will defend their homeland and their freedom from a foreign invader that has come to take it away.”
“There can be no certainty about what will come next, but no matter what the next days and weeks bring, the United States will stand with the people of Ukraine — now and always,” the California Democrat continued. “This begins by moving swiftly beyond the significant sanctions already announced by the Biden administration to fully cutting off Russia’s leading financial institutions from the global economy and ending Europe’s dependence on Russian oil and gas for good.”
Schiff said Putin also made a strategic error.
“History will show this war of choice to be a devastating strategic miscalculation by Putin, one that will give Russia no new security but will stiffen the resolve of NATO and democracies around the world,” Schiff said.
Rep. Mike Gallagher, a member of the House Armed Services Committee and House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said in a statement that Putin “is a KGB thug who understands no language except force.”
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“He has brought war to Europe because he believes he will secure a quick and decisive victory,” the Wisconsin Republican said. “Our task is to ensure that he is disappointed, by aiding the Ukrainians who are taking up arms to defend their homeland and imposing economic costs now, not after the inevitable humanitarian disaster. Unfortunately, throughout this crisis — as during the Afghanistan fiasco — the Biden Administration has demonstrated little urgency, creativity, or willingness to admit errors and adapt. The president must change course, or our deterrent posture will continue to collapse, chaos will continue to spread, and eventually no one will trust America’s promises or fear American power.”
