WASHINGTON DC – A top US Senator urged the Trump administration and NATO allies to maintain “significant pressure” on Russia to end its war in Ukraine, drawing a parallel to the recent US-brokered peace agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, argued on the Senate floor Friday morning that the strength-backed diplomacy that secured a ceasefire and hostage release in the Middle East should be the blueprint for confronting Moscow.
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“To bring an end to this war, the US and our allies must maintain pressure on Moscow, as was just seen we maintained pressure on Hamas,” Moran said. US President Donald Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky met at the White House on Friday. Trump also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin a day before.
Moran held up the Israeli-Hamas agreement - which he credited to the Trump administration’s efforts - as an example of what strength can achieve.
The deal, which he said released all living hostages and dealt a “crippling blow” to Iran, was made possible by the “strength of the US military, our steadfast alliance with Israel and making it unequivocally clear to Hamas that the US is willing and able to assist our ally in war.”
Tomahawk missiles and sanctions
The “conflict in Ukraine, Moran argued, threatens US safety, economic stability, and global leadership. He supported the potential transfer of US Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine as a key tool for increasing pressure on Putin.
“This weaponry will strengthen Ukraine’s ability to defend its territory, deter further Russian aggression and help level the battlefield as negotiations hopefully move forward,” Moran said.
Beyond military support, the Senator emphasized the need for a sustained economic campaign. He noted that Russia’s economy is “already under strain,” but its capacity to fund the war would continue without “enforcement of steady and severe global sanctions.”
Moran championed pending legislation with bipartisan support in the Senate that he said would “deliver a severe blow to Russia’s economy and trade” by cutting off resources for Putin’s military campaign.
NATO allies must share burden
Moran also called on NATO allies to increase defense spending and take on a larger share of the financial burden for Europe’s defense. He praised a recent agreement secured by President Trump with NATO partners to raise defense spending to five percent of their GDP by 2035.
He concluded by stressing that the US must stand firm in its support for Kyiv to send a clear message to rivals across the globe.
“It is imperative that the US stands firm in its support for Ukraine and, in doing so, places significant pressure on Putin to show our adversaries that democracy will not go undefended,” Moran stated.
Moran’s remarks underscore a growing push in the US Senate to leverage the recent high-stakes diplomatic success in the Middle East as a model for ending the protracted conflict in Eastern Europe.
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