Washington, DC – Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today issued the following statement on the 2-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine: 

“Two years ago, Vladimir Putin launched a horrific and unjustified full-scale invasion of Ukraine, unleashing terror on the Ukrainian people, who have been facing intensified Russian aggression since 2014. Ukrainians have valiantly defended their country from the Kremlin’s attempt to deny their right to choose democracy over autocracy and freedom over subjugation. The United States and our partners and allies have supported the bravery and resolve of the Ukrainian people, and we must continue that support.  

“At this two-year mark of Russia’s renewed war, and following the murder of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the Biden Administration, along with our EU partners, have sanctioned additional actors who enable the Russian war machine, closed loopholes, and targeted individuals involved in the killing of Navalny. I am determined to help the Administration continue to evolve its strategy to ensure Ukraine’s victory. Russia’s attacks on freedom and sovereignty, both within its borders and beyond, will continue to have consequences and accountability. 

“At the same time, Congress must also act to provide urgently needed assistance to Ukraine. To abandon Ukraine now, as MAGA extremists in Congress are working to do, would be a gift to Moscow, a chilling signal to rest of the world, and an open invitation for Vladimir Putin to press further into Europe. Putin and his supporters in Beijing and Pyongyang think time is on their side, and the U.S. will turn inward and prove itself an unreliable partner. Let’s not prove their assumptions correct. 

“Ukraine’s future is in NATO and in the EU. Congressional action is well overdue as Ukrainians continue to their fight for a free and democratic future.”