Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday in Kyiv regarding legislation they are sponsoring to impose severe sanctions on Russia and the coordinated effort to end the more than three-year-old conflict.
Graham and Blumenthal, steadfast supporters of the U.S. providing financial and military assistance to Ukraine, last week introduced a bill that would impose severe sanctions against Russia and those supporting its aggression in Ukraine should Moscow refuse to engage in good-faith peace negotiations. The sanctions include a 500% tariff on imported goods from countries that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other products.
“We understand that Russia is trying to turn diplomacy into a farce,” Zelenskyy said, The New Voice of Ukraine reported. “It hides behind talks while planning fresh offensive operations on the front, striking our towns and villages daily and rejecting any ceasefire proposals.
“That’s why additional pressure is necessary.”
A companion bill was introduced in the House by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., which, like the Senate bill, has wide support from both parties. Fitzpatrick, a member of the congressional Ukraine Caucus – Graham and Blumenthal are members of the Senate Ukraine Caucus – met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv in April.
“Enough of talking, it’s time to act,” Graham told reporters, according to Bloomberg. “I would expect next week that the Senate will start moving the sanctions bill.
“There are House members that are ready to move in the House, and you will see congressional action.”
The senators praised Ukraine for continued resistance to Russian aggression, according to The New Voice of Ukraine, and Zelenskyy returned the favor by thanking Blumenthal and Graham for spearheading the sanctions bill.
“I appreciate this initiative — a bipartisan sanctions bill now supported by 82 senators,” said Zelenskyy, who also expressed gratitude to the American people and to President Donald Trump for his efforts to end the conflict. “We discussed this and other measures to force Russia toward peace, and we will continue working on this together.”
Zelenskyy’s office said in a news release that Graham and Blumenthal visited the site of a missile strike in Ukraine’s capital on April 24 that killed 13 and injured at least 90 others. The strike, one of the deadliest since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, raised Trump’s ire against Russian President Vladimir Putin, urging him to “STOP!” and get a peace deal done in a Truth Social post.
“I’m determined that we will pass the Russian sanctions bill, now with 82 co-sponsors evenly bipartisan divided, and move forward to send a message to Putin: It’s crunch time,” Blumenthal said in a video from Kyiv posted Friday on his X account. “Show up and put up or you will be hit by bone-crushing sanctions, and more military aid for Ukraine, which we have an obligation to provide.”
The sides also discussed direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul, noting that the only concrete outcome has been a prisoner exchange, The New Voice of Ukraine reported. Zelenskyy said Ukraine remains open to constructive dialogue but added Russia did not bother to send its proposed agenda for the next round of negotiations Monday in Istanbul. He reiterated that Moscow’s true intentions are embodied by preparations for another major offensive this summer.
Russia reportedly did say Friday that Putin will not be part of the next round of talks Monday.
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