Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Thursday, U.S. Representative Mike Waltz (FL-6) released the following statement regarding Russia’s invasion into Ukraine:

"Vladimir Putin’s invasion into Ukraine violates the very fabric of international norms and is a direct threat to our Western values. The United States is now on the verge of losing a second democratic partner in just six months while our global adversaries have expanded their influence of evil around the globe. As was the case with Russia after the fall of Kabul- China, North Korea, and Iran will only be further emboldened by the fecklessness of the Biden Administration’s weak response, placing Americans and our national interests in jeopardy.

"This invasion could have been deterred had the Biden Administration maintained sanctions on Nord Stream 2, pressured our NATO allies to move away from energy reliability on Russia, forcefully responded to the Kremlin-linked hacks on the Colonial Pipeline last year, and implemented preventive sanctions on Russia prior to their invasion into Ukraine.

"Now is the time for President Biden to take punitive actions to address Russia’s threat to the West. The United States must publicly support Ukrainian resistance efforts should Russia succeed in its military invasion. Putin must understand the costs of invading a sovereign country and know that this will turn into a bloody quagmire – much like that of the Soviet Union’s occupation of Chechnya.

"In addition to already announced sanctions, the Biden Administration should consider implementing continued measures laid out in the NYET Act that will further cripple his political and military allies, starve Russia of much-continued capital, and resource Ukraine with continued lethal military assistance.

"During the Trump Administration, the United States demonstrated real deterrence by implementing meaningful sanctions, successfully convincing our NATO allies to increase their defense spending, taking the fight directly to Russian mercenaries in Syria, and withdrawing from agreements like INF and Open Skies when it was clear Putin was violating them. It’s time to restore the same level of deterrence which is the only thing that will reestablish stability."