Sen. Lindsey Graham Voices His Support For Ukraine: ‘It’s Now Time To Give Them The F-16s’

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) underscored the significance of supporting Ukraine. He expressed his backing for the United States’ provision of overseas training to Ukrainian forces, a request recently made by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Graham also called out the Biden administration and his Republican colleague, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama), labeling him as an “outlier” within the party due to his stance on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine.

“Yes, I do support us training inside the country,” Graham told Face The Nation. “The delay of weapons because of House inaction, we did lose momentum. But from the very beginning, the Biden administration did not impose pre-invasion sanctions to deter Putin. They didn’t give weapons to Ukraine early on to deter Putin and now we have a chance to reset this war.”

Graham reaffirmed his strong support for Ukraine as it continues to face Russia’s invasion, which began over two years ago.

“Either we’re going to help Ukraine or we’re not. It’s now time to give them the F-16s, let them fly the planes, long-range artillery to hit targets inside of Russia… Go on the offensive. I think this summer, Ukraine will regain military momentum.”

Graham stated that Zelenskyy wants the United States “to go after the Russian assets all over the world,” and “take the money from the sovereign wealth funds of Russia and give it to Ukraine.” He cited the $300 billion in Russian assets in Europe, urging the United States to seize these funds and allocate them to Ukraine.

“If we help Ukraine now, they can become the best business partner we ever dreamed of,” Graham said, referring to mineral assets in Ukraine. “This is a very big deal, how Ukraine ends. Let’s help them win a war we can’t afford to lose.”

During the interview, Graham clarified that Tuberville’s recent remarks about Zelenskyy and Putin on Steve Brannon’s War Room podcast represent “him and him alone,” not the GOP at large.

Last week, Tuberville called Zelenskyy a “dictator” and “not a constitutional president,” arguing against U.S. support for him and downplaying Putin’s actions in Ukraine.

“He doesn’t want Ukraine, he doesn’t want Europe. He’s got enough land of his own,” said Tuberville, “He just wants to make sure that he does not have United States weapons in Ukraine pointing at Moscow.”

In response, Graham said, “Sen. Tuberville’s analysis really misses what Putin is all about. If you spend 15 minutes studying Putin and what he wants, he wants to recreate the Russian Empire. He’s not gonna stop in Ukraine. It’s not about NATO, it’s not about American weapons in Ukraine, it’s about a megalomaniac wanting to create the Russian Empire by force of arms. If you don’t stop him, there goes Taiwan.”

Earlier this year, Congress approved a foreign aid package that included support for Ukraine, but its implementation had been delayed due to partisan disputes.

On Friday, President Joe Biden met with Zelenskyy in Normandy France, where world leaders gathered to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day. At the event, Biden publicly apologized for the delay in military assistance that had allowed Russia to make gains on the battlefield.