LegiStorm

WASHINGTON, DC – This evening, U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) spoke on the Senate floor for the 28th consecutive week while the Senate has been in session as Russia continues its brutal, illegal, and unprovoked war on Ukraine, and discussed why it is so important that the United States continue economic, military, and humanitarian aid to our ally. Portman noted the attacks on civilians, noncombatants, and energy infrastructure, causing blackouts and forcing Ukrainians to endure an especially harsh winter. Portman also talked about his trips to the region, including to the town of Bakhmut in 2018, which has now turned into a grinding battlefield of attrition. He commended the administration for the Patriot missile defense systems the United States is reportedly going to send Ukraine, and he urged the administration to provide fourth-generation fighter jets, Abrams main battle tanks, and long-range missiles to enable Ukraine to liberate more of its territory.

Senator Portman is a co-founder of the bipartisan Senate Ukraine Caucus and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He has long been a vocal supporter of Ukraine’s fight for freedom and western values over tyranny and Russian aggression. Portman has now gone to Kyiv twice since Russia invaded Ukraine, and 10 times since the Euromaidan, or “Revolution of Dignity,” in 2014. He urged his colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and those newly elected, to continue to support Ukraine from Russia’s brutal onslaught against an innocent democratic nation who just wants to live in peace with their neighbors.   

A transcript of his remarks can be found below and a video can be found here.

“I come to the floor once again to discuss the war in Ukraine and why it's so important that all of us, the United States, our allies stand up for Ukraine at this point and provide them the needed military, economic, and humanitarian aid that they need. Over the weekend I spoke at the annual holiday lunch of the Cleveland area nationalities movement. As my colleague from Ohio knows, this was started during the Cold War to advocate for freedom for the former Soviet states. The group today includes people whose families came from all over eastern, central Europe, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, of course Ukraine, and many other countries. 

“All strongly support Ukrainian freedom and the right of Ukraine to chart its own course. At the luncheon I talked to some of my friends who were there, many of whom have family or friends in Ukraine. We talked about some of the hardships that their relatives and their friends in Ukraine are facing today and how as we approach the holiday season here in America, we're thinking about Christmas shopping and putting up decorations and spending time with our family and friends over the holidays. 

“They're thinking about something else. They're thinking about how they can survive. They're thinking about how to stay warm, whether they're going to have running water or electricity. They're living with fear and uncertainty not knowing when the next Russian missile might strike. The brutal, unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine has now turned into an outright attack on civilians and noncombatants. This photo is something that we're seeing in communities all over Ukraine. This is some civilian infrastructure. You can see the power grid here, the power lines. 

“This was the result of a Russian missile strike. All over this is happening, drones, missiles attacking infrastructure, killing civilians, by the way, and forcing people to live in the dark and in the cold as Ukraine's severe winter weather approaches. Although these merciless Russian attacks are meant to weaken the resolve of Ukrainians, it's not having that effect actually. I've seen this on my trips to Ukraine, it's hardening people’s resolve.  Ukrainians know these are desperate attacks. Why? Because Russians are losing on the battlefield. Ukrainians have shown courage, effectiveness and pushing out Russia from all these red areas of Ukraine. 

“This is where Russia was after February 24. Fifty percent or more of the country has now been liberated by Ukraine troops. We forget about that. About 55 percent of Ukraine has now been liberated thanks to the, again, the resolve and the courage and the military skill of the Ukrainians. Ukrainian soldiers continue to advance more slowly, but continue to advance, giving the Russians no time to relax or recover. Here is where we are today. 

“Remember before there was red all over the country of Ukraine. This is where the Russians are now. This striped red line is the part that Russia invaded back in 2014, and the red part here is where they invaded on February 24th and are still occupying parts of Ukraine. In the east near Bakhmut, which is right here, Russian forces and Wagner group – mercenaries – who are fighting on behalf of Russia, are fighting a war of attrition. It's a grinding war of attrition, with marginal gains to show for their massive losses in terms of manpower and equipment. 

“In its attempt to capture this town of Bakhmut, Russia has turned what used to be a quaint tree-lined city that I visited in 2018 into a bloodbath. This is what Bakhmut looks like today. It looks like something you'd see out of a World War I film. Ukrainian officials say Moscow is now losing 50 soldiers a day to maintain this slow, bruising advance to reach the city's eastern gates, all this death and destruction over a city that has marginal strategic advantage for Russia. It appears to observers that Russia is willing to put their soldiers and mercenaries in harm's way in Bakhmut because it's the only place that Russian forces are genuinely advancing at all. And Vladimir Putin is eager, even desperate to claim some sort of victory to try to salvage this failed military campaign that they're on. I did go to Bakhmut back in 2018. It was then called the line of contact. 

“I met with Ukrainian troops who were there holding the line, including the 54th Mechanized Brigade who were still fighting there in that region. I saw men willing to die for their country, for their freedom, for their families. So, I was not surprised by the bravery and resolve the Ukrainian troops have shown since February 24. I was expecting it based on what I had seen in Bakhmut. Those soldiers I met gave me this flag when I was there. It's signed by a number of the soldiers I met, and it says at the bottom here, Glory to Ukraine. Glory to the Heroes. Slava Ukraini. Heroyam Slava. That's the rallying cry. These troops who signed this flag, to me, I'm told many of them are likely to be dead or injured now because the fighting in Bakhmut has been so intense. 

“So godspeed to those troops who are holding the line against this Russian assault tonight as we talk on the floor of the United States Senate. The Ukrainians are making progress elsewhere. You see here in Kherson, this was the city that the Russians took on February 24. It was the only provincial capital that they took, the biggest city they took early on. They have now abandoned Kherson, and Ukrainian troops have taken Kherson and liberated it, and the liberation has been extraordinary. You see people coming out of their homes and hugging the troops, and you see the war crimes that the Russians were committing. 

“The withdrawal from Kherson to the west side of the river here has been a great victory for the Ukrainian troops. The relentless counteroffensive is actually working. With this situation on the battlefield, the military outlook here for Russia looks bleak. It's precisely because they are not winning on the battlefield, though, that they are instead attacking civilian targets. These cowardly attacks we've seen all over Ukraine. Electricity, natural gas, water, knocking out everything they can in order to try to break the will and resolve of the people of Ukraine. 

“This past weekend 1.5 million people were left without power after Russian air strikes damaged local energy infrastructure in Odessa. So 1.5 million people here were without electricity. Most of the people now have electricity, because Ukrainians are moving quickly to try to restore it but then it's bombed again and again. Across the country, according to the Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmyhal, after eight waves of missile attacks on the country, all thermal and hydroelectric power plants in Ukraine have been damaged. 

“In other words, every single power plant – coal, natural gas, hydroelectric have all been bombed. Many have now been repaired, again and again and again, but the bombings continue. Last Friday, according to the deputy head of President Zelenskyy’s office, 68 strikes in the Kherson region occurred, 68 strikes across the line here in Ukrainian territory. This included a strike at a hospital in Kherson that damaged a children's ward. 

“It included an attack on a morgue in this area. In the northeastern part of Ukraine near Kharkiv there's also been great progress. Recently you saw where the Ukrainians pushed the Russians toward the east. These Russian cross-border attacks on the city of Volshank in that area left thousands of people without heat in the midst of winter earlier this week. I saw the effects of these missile attacks firsthand the last time I was in Ukraine. I visited Kyiv about a month ago with my colleague Chris Coons from Delaware. We saw the destruction these missiles are causing.

“In this case it was at a headquarters of Ukraine's utility company. We then after that actually had a dinner meeting with parliamentarians from Ukraine at a restaurant where the power been taken out through these attacks. We had to conduct business with flashlights. It was incredible later that night to look at the city of Kyiv from an office building, a modern 21st century city completely dark. 

“Thanks to the dated air defense systems they do have, Ukrainians have been able to destroy a lot of these Russian missiles. They're intercepting most of them, somewhere between 60 and 70 percent probably based on the information I have. But enough of them get through to cause this incredible damage to Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and to kill Ukrainians on the ground, as these temperatures drop. 

“The temperature in Kyiv tonight as we talk is about 23 degrees Fahrenheit. Ukraine isn't just trying to shoot down Russian made missiles and Iranian made drones. We know there are Iranian made drones and Russian missiles coming into Ukraine. They also have to shoot down Ukrainian-made missiles. Why do I say that? Because according to Ukraine's deputy intelligence chief some of the missiles Russia has fired recently have actually been missiles Ukraine voluntarily gave to Russia as part of the 1994 Budapest Agreement, the so-called Budapest Memorandum. You’ll recall the Budapest Memorandum was a document signed by the United States, the U.K., and Russia with Ukraine. 

“This was after the fall of the Soviet Union. In the agreement, all parties including Russia promised to respect the independence and sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine in exchange for Ukraine giving up their nuclear weapons. But also providing missiles and strategic bombers to Russia. So now these very same missiles and very same bombers are being used by Russia in its ruthless campaign against innocent civilians in Ukraine. 

“There can be no clearer display of Russia's contempt for its international obligations and total disregard for the Budapest Memorandum. Ukraine gave up its weapons in exchange for peace and instead they have war. There can be no more urgent or important request from Ukraine than a better air defense system. That's what they need more than anything else. Every day, vital infrastructure is destroyed, civilians being killed. The news from the Biden administration yesterday, they may be thinking seriously about sending patriot missile systems to Ukraine, our most advanced air defense weapons system, is very encouraging to me. 

“Here is the Patriot Missile System. This one is actually in Poland. We provided this to the Polish government. We now need to provide it to the Ukrainian government. I've called for this for months, as have others, and I hope this comes to fruition. We need to get these weapons into the hands of the Ukrainians quickly, before there are more civilian deaths recorded and more destruction of key infrastructure. If the administration does not do this, I fear, as winter sets in, more and more Ukrainians will be forced to leave their communities, compounding the humanitarian crisis that is already there. 

“As you know, there are 6.5 million people displaced internally in Ukraine already, over seven million people, probably close to eight, outside of Ukraine as displaced individuals in places like Poland, the E.U., even the United States. I continue to urge the Biden administration to take a more assertive approach on military assistance in general. There are about 50 countries helping Ukraine on the military side. 

“All the free world is stepping up to help, but America leads, and we need to provide Ukraine with more of the weapons that Ukraine says they actually need, like the Patriot missiles. But also they've asked for fourth-generation fighter jets like the F-16 or similar European models. They're in Europe already, we’ve provided them to the European countries. But we have to sign off for the European countries, or other countries, to provide them to Ukraine. They want modern tanks like the Abrams tank, that is made in my home state of Ohio.

“They want long-range missiles like the ATACAMS that can be fired through the HIMARS launchers that would give the Russian soldiers few places to hide in the illegally occupied territory. When I visited the region in March, May August, and again in November, I met a lot of these displaced people in Ukraine and hear their harrowing stories.  We were at a world food U.N. site in Kyiv in our last trip, and there were a lot of refugees there, displaced people, internally displaced people from Ukraine, who were getting the basics just to be able to survive. 

“Many sat down with us and talked, and two women told me one of these stories, it was about a young man who was tortured, tortured by his Russian occupiers and this was near the city of Kharkiv, and taken to the main square and tied up in the main square. Then when he wouldn't answer whatever questions they were asking him, he was taken down below into a dungeon basically, a basement, and they found these basement chambers all over Ukraine where there is occupied territory.

“The young man actually survived miraculously, but he was in terrible shape when he came out. But his mother didn't survive. The angst and anxiety and despair she felt about her son resulted in her death. Many of them sat down with us and talked, and two women told me one of these stories, it was about a young man who was tortured, tortured by his Russian occupiers and this was near the city of Kharkiv. And taken to the main square and tied up in the main square.

“Then when he wouldn't answer whatever questions they were asking him, he was taken down below into a dungeon basically, a basement, and they found these basement chambers all over Ukraine where there is occupied territory. The young man actually survived miraculously, but he was in terrible shape when he came out. But his mother didn't survive.

“The angst and anxiety and despair she felt about her son resulted in her death. These women were telling this with tears streaming down their cheeks. Of course, we were trying too. But that's happening all over Ukraine. These war crimes behind enemy lines in occupied territories, revealing every time there's a liberation. It's positive there's a liberation, but you get the negative that this is what happened to these people. We don't really know the extent of the atrocities and war crimes because there is so much territory occupied by Russia. Anyway, these people have seen death and destruction no person should have to experience.

“Some of my constituents in Ohio have been very helpful. They know some of these refugees. They have personal connections, again, family or friends, and they have helped. From northeast Ohio, where we have a big Ukrainian community, Marta Liscynesky of the United Ukrainian Organizations of Ohio and Andy Futey of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America. They are presidents of those organizations, they have both jumped in with both feet and helped. Med-Wish, which is a great organization in Cleveland has provided a lot of medical equipment. They provided everything. Clothes, medicine, any help kind for these refugees.

“They've provided armored vests from law enforcement all over Ohio as an example to the territorial defense forces. So, God bless them. They're doing what they can to help, but unless we intervene with better ways to defend the air, there will be more and more of these displaced people and more and more humanitarian needs. So, on that front, in addition to the possible news about the patriot missile system from yesterday, I was also pleased to hear President Biden and President Zelenskyy spoke over the weekend about the need for increased support for Ukraine. On Friday, the administration announced another $275 million in military assistance, including more ammunition for the HIMARS missile launchers that we talked about, that will counter Russian and Iranian drones. There are dozens of allies who have provided military assistance.

“We're not doing this alone, but U.S. leadership has been key. By the way, the 20 HIMARS, high-mobility artillery rocket systems, that are in Ukraine have all survived. Not a single one has been taken out by Russians. It's amazing. The Ukrainians have been quite resourceful to make that happen. Thank God we still have those weapons. Germany and the U.K. have also provided some of these weapons. They're making a huge difference on the battlefield. The long range and high precision allowed the Ukrainians to strike deep into the occupied territories to be able to disrupt Russian logistics and command-and-control centers.

“That has made a big difference. That's how Kherson was taken, was they cut off the supply chain to Kherson, to the point these Russian soldiers could not continue to hold the city and continue with their atrocities. It's no wonder, by the way, that HIMARS are popular in Ukraine. When I was there, the embassy staff sent out for takeoff food, it came back in a bag, it was hamburgers, on the bag was scrawled, ‘thank you for the HIMARS.’ From a restaurant worker. I'm also told that HIMARS is now a popular name for Ukrainian newborns. They're naming their children after the weapons provided by this body because they're making a huge difference in saving lives.

“In addition to patriot missiles, we've got to continue to provide Ukrainians with other air defense systems like the mid-range NASAMS systems they we are starting to provide, but also the cost-effective electronic warfare systems that would enable Ukraine to defend the skies over the long-term. Those can be very effective against drones, as you can imagine. We've seen this before. In 1940, the people of Great Britain suffered under relentless bombardment from Nazi aircraft. Remember, they tried to bomb London into the stone age. At the time, many thought this is going to be the end of Great Britain. You can't push back against these Nazis.

“But the Brits were resolute, they were defiant, and eventually, the Royal Air Force defeated Hitler's onslaught in the Battle of Britain and ensured the country would survive the war. Of course, the United States got engaged. We went on to win that conflict. Today, just again, there's another indiscriminate bombing campaign going on, this time in Ukraine against civilians and civilian infrastructure. Ukraine is fighting its own Battle of Britain. We've got to be sure that we are there with them to provide what they need to survive their battle. I was also pleased to learn this week the European Union proposed a new round of sanctions.

“If it is agreed to by the member states, I hope it will be, this package of sanctions would ban exports of drone engines to Russia, and also include other prohibitions that will hopefully stifle Russia's abilities to supply its military. This is very important. My view, it should have happened a long time ago, but let's do it now, cut off the ability for Russia to be able to repair and re-create the drones that are getting destroyed by the Ukrainians. Let's be sure we're not giving the Russians what they need to continue its war machine. Russia's assault is not limited to bombs and missiles. I'm hearing more and more about mines.

“According to reports, Russian forces have endangered up to 65,000 square miles of Ukrainian territory with landmines. The United States is partnering with our Ukrainian allies to demine that area. This aid has come in the form of training and equipment, and as well as U.S.-funded contractors and demining teams. In areas where the mines are on the Ukrainian side of the line, we are actively trying to help. This is an important step, in my view. Kind of the first step toward Ukrainian reconstruction. When Russia resorts to these cowardly missile attacks on civilian targets, Ukraine has responded in kind with precise strikes on Russian military targets.

“So, Russia attacking civilian targets. Ukrainians responding with targeted attacks on Russian military targets. For example, explosions have occurred here. This is Ukraine. This is the occupied area. Explosions have occurred deep in Russian territory here. This is Ukraine. This is the occupied territory. What are those areas? Well, these are Russian air bases deep inside Russian territory, but they are home to the bombers that have been targeting civilian infrastructure and killing Ukrainian civilians with cruise missiles over the past couple of months.

“As the U.K. Ministry of Defense reported last week, ‘these may be some of the most strategically significant failures of forced protection since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.’ Over the weekend, Ukraine launched a series of HIMARS strikes on the Russian-occupied city of Maletipol, which is here. Including a strike on Russian military barracks that reportedly killed a lot of the Wagner mercenaries, this is in this area here. America has been blessed with big, wide oceans on our east, to our west, and friendly neighbors to our north and south. It's hard to grasp what they're going through. It’s hard to gap what it's like to have a war ravage your homeland and force you to leave your home.

“Russia’s atrocities and clear human rights violations is one compelling reason supporting Ukraine is the right thing to do. I hope this week, in this chamber, we'll once again provide support for Ukraine. Another reason is that death and destruction is not likely to end in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin is on record saying the borders of Russia have no end. He and his senior officials have also talked about re-creating the old Soviet empire. They have said that Ukraine is just the first step. I will tell you, other countries in eastern Europe get that, and they're understandably quite nervous.

“That's why they have stepped up big time to help Ukraine. That’s why they have increased their own military expanding. That’s why they have expanded their military cooperation with the United States. Think of Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia. They're all doing that. Finland and Sweden certainly understand how dangerous Russia has become, which is why they have now decided that they are going to join NATO, after years of neutrality, Finland and Sweden. In my view the only way to get Putin to back off and negotiate an end to this ruthless and senseless war is to continue to demonstrate unity among free nations, to tighten the sanctions on the Russian economy, and to continue to help Ukraine win on the battlefield.

“That's how this thing ends. Through success. U.S. leadership and assistance is key to that strategy. I'm not advocating a blank check, by the way. I hope nobody is. I believe there needs to be accountability for the assistance that we provide, and there is. There's accountability on the state aid. There's account on humanitarian aid. And on the military aid. I've seen it in action in meeting with the 101st Airborne in Poland, how they have end-use monitoring of the equipment we're sending. The Ukrainians themselves want to have transparency. They understand how important that is. That's why they have Deloitte, an American accounting firm involved, in monitoring, and providing reports.

“That's why we're running our assistance through the World Bank, where they're auditing and reporting back to us. That's important to do. But the alternative to helping Ukraine, to me, is unthinkable. What would have happened if the United States said we're not going to help here? And the rest of the world said, well, if the Americans aren't going to step forward and provide leadership, we're not going to, either. First, it's clear to all of us, this country would be occupied by Russia today.

“Even if Russia didn't go ahead and move into all these other countries they say they're going to move into, Ukraine is the first step and they want to re-create the empire or the Soviet Union, even if it was just Ukraine and they stopped at the Ukrainian borders, suddenly you'd have three NATO countries that have a border with Russia, who do not now.

“Really, a fourth, because all Poland has is a very small outpost of Russia here. So, you'd suddenly have NATO countries, the United States under article five is committed to protecting, with an aggressive Russia on its border. We would be mobilizing thousands of troops. We would have massive amounts of weapons at the borders of these NATO allies at a tremendous cost to the United States taxpayer. Is that a better alternative than helping give Ukraine the tools they need to be able to do their own fighting? Which has been successful up to now, more than anyone could have imagined.

“Finally, I would say that allowing an authoritarian regime being able to take over an ally, and a democracy with impunity, that sends exactly the wrong message to the rest of the world at a time we could least afford that to happen. Think about China eyeing a potential military assault on Taiwan. Think about our ally Israel as they continue to face threats from Iran and others in the Middle East. Both our adversaries and allies are watching to see if the United States and our allies will help maintain that post-World War II order. Or whether it's each country for itself.

“If it's each country for itself because we we're not helping Ukraine, the militarization around the world increases dramatically, as do the nuclear weapons. Ukraine just wants to live in peace with its neighbors, including Russia. But when attacked by Russian missiles and drones, Ukraine has fought to ensure the flame of freedom here is not going to go out. From visits, I can say with certainty that they will never give up, and we must not give up on them.

“The Ukrainian people tasted freedom when they embarked on their revolution of dignity, as they call it back in 2014. They threw off a back Russian-backed corrupt government and instead embraced the West, the European Union, United States of America, freedom, democracy, free markets. Ukraine chose to stand with us, with Europe, the United States, and other free nations.

“This is not the time for the United States and its allies to stand down. So, for my current colleagues and the Senators just elected, I urge you, let's continue our support for Ukraine in this worthy cause of protecting freedom. Thank you and I yield the floor."

All official press releases from Former Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH)