WASHINGTON — Republican members of Congress have been some of the strongest critics of Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, keeping in line with their party’s traditional hawkish views about the United States’ role in upholding freedom and democracy around the globe. For years, that also translated into strong support within the GOP for aiding Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.

But recently, as President Donald Trump has cozied up to Putin and moved to normalize relations with Russia, Republicans who once vowed to uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty have stayed silent or moderated their tone. Trump has proposed that Ukraine trade away a 50% stake in its mineral resources, an idea its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, rejected last week.

On Wednesday, as representatives of the United States and Russia met for their most extensive conversation in years, to agree to work on a peace settlement without Ukraine’s presence and to discuss the possibility of American oil companies doing hundreds of billions of dollars in business in Russia, several Republican senators dismissed the talks as preliminary.

Here’s a look at some of their statements, then and now.

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina

— What he said: “If you’re worried about being too provocative about Russia, stop worrying. Stop worrying. You are not too provocative — we need to up our game when it comes to Russia.”

Graham made those remarks last June while introducing a bipartisan resolution to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism, a label currently reserved for North Korea, Syria, Cuba and Iran.

He has often called Putin a “thug,” and previously compared him to Adolf Hitler. Graham has also called for the Russian leader to be assassinated: “Vladimir Putin is not a legitimate leader; he is a war criminal that needs to be dealt with.”

— What he is saying now: Last week at the Munich Security Conference, Graham praised Trump as a strong leader who could “get a good deal for Ukraine.”

He also voiced support for a deal Trump proposed that would grant the United States a 50% interest in all of Ukraine’s mineral resources in exchange for U.S. support — the offer that Zelenskyy has rejected.

“I don’t care if they meet Putin in Cleveland,” he said of the Trump administration. “I don’t care if they talk, I don’t care if they go on vacation. It doesn’t matter to me what you do as long as you get it right.”

Sen. John Thune of South Dakota

— What he said: “America cannot retreat from the world stage. American leadership is desperately needed now more than I think any time in recent history, and we need to make sure that Ukraine has the weaponry and the resources that it needs to defeat the Russians.”

Last March, Thune pushed for the passage of a Ukraine aid bill and stressed that if the United States did not arm Ukraine that Russia would cinch a victory in Ukraine and “roll into a NATO country,” igniting a conflict that could involve U.S. troops.

“We’re going to be sending American sons and daughters,” he said in an interview on PBS News Hour.

— What he is saying now: This week, Thune, now the majority leader, told reporters that the conflict has “dragged on” and that the United States needed to “bring an end to the war.”

Of Ukraine, he said, “at some point, they’ve got to be part of that conversation.”

“This thing’s dragged on for three years now. We need to bring an end to the war, and at some point they’ve got to be part of that conversation. So hopefully they’ll figure out a path forward that brings the war to an end, that maintains a sovereign Ukraine, and prevents the further incursion of Russia in that region, the world, in Europe.”

Related Story: Zelenskyy Says He Will Only Meet Putin After Common Plan With Trump Is Negotiated

Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho

— What he said: “Putin is not going to stop with Ukraine” if he wins the war. “If we end up in war with Russia, what we’re spending here is a drop in the bucket by comparison. I deal with this every day and it’s on my mind every day.”

Risch, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has called the Russian invasion of Ukraine a “challenge” confronting the United States and said that the nation should “deny Russia a victory.” Before a vote on an aid package to Ukraine in 2023, Risch gave a full-throated defense of funding aid and arms to the nation.

He also blamed President Joe Biden for not being able to articulate the need for aiding Ukraine.

— What he is saying now: Risch has called the peace talks “a work in progress” and said he would give the Trump administration “space” to figure out how to negotiate.

“But obviously, the Ukrainians have to be there — and the Europeans for that matter, too.”

Related Story: Russia Rejoices at Trump-Putin Call as Zelenskyy Rejects Talks Without Ukraine Present

Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa

— What she has said: “The United States, Ukraine and the free world have the will and the means to stop Vladimir Putin’s tyranny.”

Ernst spoke on the Senate floor in 2022 after joining a bipartisan delegation to Europe less than one month after Russia invaded Ukraine, and declared that Putin’s “best days are behind him.”

She criticized the Biden administration, for its actions early in the war, as attempting to appease Putin.

“Letting an adversary define the military’s rules of engagement, letting an aggressor dictate the boundaries of our response is not just a folly — it’s suicidal. The administration crossed their fingers and hoped Putin would play nice.”

Ernst added that the nation’s “unshakable commitment to allies and partners keeps Americans prosperous and our families safe.”

— What she is saying now: Ernst told reporters on Tuesday that she was glad Russia was at the negotiating table and brushed off any concern over Ukraine’s lack of representation. “Obviously I’m a huge supporter of Ukraine, but it’s just the beginning.”

Related Story: President Trump and Putin Have Agreed to Start Negotiations to End the Ukraine War

Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas

— What he has said: “It’s not just Vladimir Putin and Europe that’s watching; the rest of the world is watching and most particularly Xi Jinping is watching what happens in Ukraine,” Cotton said in March 2022 on Fox News Radio, referring to China’s leader.

He suggested the United States would look weak to Xi if it did not stand up to Russia. “If he sees the United States and the West faltering and pressing Ukraine to sue for peace while Russian troops are still on Ukraine soil, he is much more likely to go for the jugular in Taiwan.”

In an interview on CNN during the 2024 presidential campaign, Cotton shrugged off concerns that Trump would not stand by Ukraine in the conflict with Russia.

“President Trump has always been strong in defense of Ukraine,” Cotton said, and he praised Trump for sending weapons during his first term.

— What he is saying now: On Tuesday, while promoting a new book on China during an appearance on “Fox & Friends,” Cotton called for “getting creative” to try to reach a truce and echoed Graham’s support for making a deal with Ukraine on its mineral resources.

On CNN later that day, he defended Trump’s establishing “diplomatic channels” with Russia and accused Biden of “tempting” Russia to invade.

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Aishvarya Kavi/Eric Lee
c.2025 The New York Times Company