Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Thursday criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s trip to Pennsylvania, where he appeared with Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) in what many Republicans saw as a political event.
Graham told reporters at the Capitol that “what happened in Pennsylvania was a mistake.”
Graham said he didn’t know who set the meeting up and that Zelensky’s visit to a munitions factory to thank workers “makes sense.” But the political overtones of the trip, Graham suggested, should have been avoided.
“Whether it was intended or not, [it] has a political perception, and that was a mistake,” Graham said.
But Graham also said that error should be stripped from the long-term goals of ensuring Ukraine is successful in its battle with Russia.
“Now here’s what my view is: It’s not about this moment, it’s about the long-term outcome,” he said. “It is in our interest as Americans to make sure that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin does not succeed dismembering Ukraine, because that will unleash China to tie Taiwan, and I think Putin will continue to go. It’s very important that I think President Zelensky make his case to President Biden today to change the military strategy, or Ukraine will be doomed, in my view, to failure.”
Zelensky is in Washington to meet with members of Congress, as well as Biden and Vice President Harris.
The Ukrainian leader’s visit to Pennsylvania with Shapiro, a finalist to be Harris’s running mate, and other Democrats sparked criticism from a host of Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.).
Johnson has demanded that Zelensky fire the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S., and Comer has started an inquiry into the Ukrainian president’s visit to Pennsylvania.
“The facility was in a politically contested battleground state, was led by a top political surrogate for Kamala Harris, and failed to include a single Republican because – on purpose – no Republicans were invited. The tour was clearly a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and is clearly election interference,” Johnson wrote Wednesday to Zelensky.
Zelensky had a meeting with a bipartisan group of senators on Thursday, in which he told the lawmakers that he could bring Russia to the negotiating table in the upcoming year if the Biden administration picks up the pace on shipments of weapons to Ukraine and greenlights missile strikes farther into Russia.
“President Zelensky says he wants to end this war through negotiations,” Graham said at the Capitol on Thursday. “The only way [you’re gonna] get Russia to the table, is hit them harder than we’re hitting them today. His number one request was to have more permissive use of long-range missiles to hit legitimate military targets. He believes if he could shut down those Russian air bases and missile bases that are attacking his country, that would give him leverage to get [Putin] to the table. I believe that, too.”
In response to Graham’s comments about long-range missile usage, a U.S. official told The Hill the weapons, in the Ukraine-Russia war’s case, are believed to be not largely effective. The official cited reasons for that belief, including the munition not being able to reach targets and an issue with stock.
The Hill has reached out to Shapiro’s office and the White House.
Updated at 4:28 p.m.