[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 16, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1209-S1211]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                Ukraine

  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Madam President, I am joined on the floor today by my 
friend and colleague Senator Graham. We have the honor of coleading the 
U.S. congressional delegation to the Munich Security Conference, which 
for a great number of reasons, all well-deserved, is still called CODEL 
McCain. It is the only codel that is named for a Senator who is no 
longer with us, and it is out of respect for Senator McCain's long 
tradition of support for that conference, NATO, and the Atlantic 
alliance, more generally.
  This year, obviously things were very different. The Russians were on 
the border of Ukraine, and two things came out of this conference that 
I thought were important. One was an early flicker of hope within the 
delegation that the Ukrainians might actually pull this off. That was 
supported by none of our briefings. The entire national security 
establishment had presumed that it was only a matter of time until 
Ukraine fell. But Senator Graham and I and others were questioning each 
other during that trip: Is there really no chance?

  And the other thing was going after the kleptocrats and the oligarchs 
around Putin and making their lives miserable. And there was just a 
wonderful explosion of bipartisan support for that that has now 
manifested in funds, in laws, in pending bills, in lots of 
bipartisanship--and Senator Graham and I are going to have a bit of a 
colloquy about that with the Chair's permission.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. I will say one thing, and then I will hand it over to 
Senator Graham.
  On March 8, I sent out over social media this sentiment:

       Keep alive in your heart the possibility that Ukraine could 
     actually win: columns stalled, defense fierce, casualties 
     high, morale low, deserters surrendering, food and fuel 
     snafu, population uncowed.

  Since then, we are hearing more and more. I will read four quotes, 
and the first is from the man we heard from this morning, the President 
of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who, in his speech to the people of 
Ukraine on March 14, didn't just talk about peace for Ukraine--
although, he did talk about peace for Ukraine, but he also talked about 
``our victory.'' Victory. It is an important word to keep in mind.
  He is not alone.
  GEN Wesley Clark, also on March 14, said:

       The battle for Ukraine is hanging in the balance. . . . If 
     we can get enough in there, they'll push the Russians out.

  Victory.

       It would be a tremendous win for the West.

  Anne Applebaum knows probably about as much about this area as 
anyone. She joined us on the Munich security delegation, and she also 
spoke afterward on the 15th of March about it. She said:

       [V]ictory in this conflict--

  Victory--

       [V]ictory . . . would provide an enormous, transformational 
     boost in confidence to the entire democratic world.

  Michael Kofman, the director of Russian studies at the Center for 
Naval Analyses has said the same thing: ``Are [the Ukrainians] in a 
position to win the war? Yes,'' he said.
  I will close with Francis Fukuyama. On the 10th of March, the author 
of ``The Origins of Political Order'' said the following things. I am 
quoting from a longer piece selectively.

       1. Russia is heading for outright defeat in Ukraine.
       2. The collapse of their position could be sudden and 
     catastrophic, rather than happening slowly through a war of 
     attrition. The army in the field will reach a point where it 
     can neither be supplied nor withdrawn, and morale will 
     vaporize.
       5. The Biden administration's decisions not to declare a 
     no-fly zone or help transfer Polish MiGs were both good ones; 
     they've kept their heads during a very emotional time. It is 
     much better to have the Ukrainians defeat the Russians on 
     their own, depriving Moscow of the excuse that NATO attacked 
     them.

  Finally, he said:

       A Russian defeat will make possible a ``new birth of 
     freedom,'' and get us out of our funk about the declining 
     state of global democracy. The spirit of 1989 will live on, 
     thanks to . . . brave Ukrainians.

  We are here together on the floor in bipartisan fashion to urge that 
in the press coverage and in our national security conversations about 
this, we keep open in our hearts and in our planning the possibility of 
victory for Ukraine.
  Senator Graham.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Carolina.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Well, thank you. All I can say is, Sheldon, thank you.
  John is no longer with us, but I think he is here in spirit at this 
moment. If Senator McCain were here, there would be 27 MiGs they would 
want to transfer because he would probably be in one, headed for 
Ukraine.
  The bottom line is, 20 days into this fight, we are all amazed at how 
bad the Russians are doing and how well the Ukrainians are doing. And I 
think what Senator Whitehouse is trying to remind us all of is that the 
outcome of Ukraine really does matter to the world at large.
  Senator McCain was known for his support of the transatlantic 
alliance, a

[[Page S1210]]

rules-based society, a values-based world, and Putin has put that in 
jeopardy.
  So let's look at it this way. If Putin wins, Sheldon, then the 
largest war criminal in the 21st century survives the dismemberment of 
a neighboring democracy, slaughter of the innocents on a mass scale. If 
he is still standing, I think China understands what to do with Taiwan 
more clearly; the Iranians are more bold when it comes to their nuclear 
ambitions; and the ripple effect in Asia and the Middle East will be 
felt if Putin wins.
  Now, if Putin loses and Ukraine wins--victory for Ukraine--I think it 
would be the biggest change for the good since World War II. What would 
it mean? It would mean that a murderous war criminal who tried to use 
force of arms to impose his will on his neighbor lost. It would mean 
that the good guys won and the bad guys lost, and China would have to 
think twice about Taiwan.
  How do we make sure victory for Ukraine is maximized? Only God knows 
how this ends, but here is what I think we can do in working together, 
with three lines of effort:
  Economic and military aid. We have had a very robust package leave 
the Congress. The President announced $800 million more in military aid 
today. We have a difference about the MiGs, but otherwise we are pretty 
much on the same sheet of music.
  Sanctions against Russia. The war is not against the Russian people. 
They are in many ways victims of Putin as much as anybody. 
Unfortunately, the only way we can bring this to a conclusion and have 
victory for Ukraine is to crush the Russian economy, so secondary 
sanctions need to be on the table. Then, if China comes to Putin's aid, 
they need to understand the consequences of that decision.
  So we are all in on sanctions, and secondary sanctions are now in 
play. The Ukrainian Ambassador asked me yesterday to broaden the 
sanctions to Russian officials in different regions that are part of 
Putin's war machine. President Zelenskyy asked for that today, too.
  My good friend Sheldon Whitehouse has been speaking about victory 
when nobody else hardly will, and I am here to say that victory for 
Ukraine is victory for America; it is victory for the rule of law; and 
it is victory for the post-World War II order that has led to historic 
prosperity.
  Three lines of effort: military assistance, including MiGs; economic 
aid--fuel, food, humanitarian airlift if that is feasible; crushing 
sanctions; labeling Putin the war criminal that he is; and letting 
every Russian military commander know that, if you pick his side and 
you carry out these war crimes against the Ukrainian people, we are 
coming after you.
  Senator Whitehouse and myself met with the British Foreign Secretary 
and Ambassador to create a joint effort, an intel cell, to collect 
information about Russian units engaged in war crimes in Ukraine and 
start putting the commander's name out for the world to understand so 
they will know that we are watching them.
  How does this end? The Russian people end the reign of terror in 
Putin. It is in their hands. I encourage them to do it.
  Finally, if there has been one voice on kleptocracy, it is Sheldon's. 
He has got it on climate change. He is determined to see that issue 
through to the end, but Senator Whitehouse was talking about 
kleptocracy long before the invasion. So we are introducing together 
the Asset Seizure for Ukraine Reconstruction Act, which is an effort by 
our government, joining with international partners, to get every yacht 
we can get, raid every bank account we can find, take the money away 
from the thieves, and give it back to the Ukrainian people and 
eventually to the Russian people.
  What Senator Whitehouse and I are trying to do in a bipartisan 
fashion is to make the war real to the oligarchs. Without the 
oligarchs, there is no Putin. It is time for them to enjoy the 
experience of having their assets that they stole taken away from them. 
``Enjoy'' is maybe not the right word. It is time for us to enjoy the 
sight of Russian oligarchs having their property taken that they 
achieved through thievery. It is time for us to start putting people in 
jail who engaged in the mass theft of the Russian people.
  Victory for Ukraine is possible, I think, if we are all in on 
sanctions, if we are all in on labeling, naming, and shaming people 
around Putin as war criminals in order to break their will, and if we 
begin to pour it on when it comes to regaining control of the skies.
  I am not for a NATO no-fly zone because I think that would put us in 
a situation with NATO and Russia that I am not comfortable with right 
now, but I am for Ukraine controlling their skies, a no-fly zone 
enforced by the Ukrainian military. That is why I want more anti-
aircraft systems and the MiGs.
  The bottom line here is that victory for Ukraine is possible because 
I think the Russian people and the Russian military are really not into 
this. I think the world is coalescing around the idea that if Putin 
wins, it is bad for us all. Now is the time. This is the most 
historically significant moment since the end of World War II for the 
continent of Europe and for freedom itself and for the rule of law.
  If we can pull this off, then those who come after us will be very 
pleased with our efforts. If we fail, future generations will wonder 
``What the hell were you doing?'' just like we all wonder how Hitler 
could have gotten so strong and nobody stopped him when they could 
have.
  Let it be said in this moment of history that Senator Whitehouse, 
Senator Graham, and many others, particularly the Ukrainian people, 
believe not only is victory for Ukraine possible, it is absolutely 
necessary.
  With that, I turn it back over to my colleague.
  Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Madam President, in conclusion, let me just thank 
Senator Graham. He has been an extraordinary leader on the Munich 
Security delegation year after year, and I think he has a ``McCainian'' 
view of our foreign policy needs.
  I would close by saying, if there is a lesson from Ukraine, it is 
that oligarchs can throw out a dictator if you put pressure on them. So 
the kleptocracy initiative is important strategically in Ukraine, and 
it also puts in motion forces that can diminish kleptocracy and 
corruption around the world in a way that enhances our rule of law and 
national security.
  The press has tended to buy into the narrative of defeat but not 
entirely.
  Sudarsan Raghavan went to the front for the Washington Post, and he 
reported back this:

       To be sure, most military analysts and Western officials 
     still predict that Russian forces will eventually encircle 
     Kyiv and push into the capital, possibly aided by airstrikes. 
     While this could prove true, it's far from clear whether 
     Russia will prevail.

  That leaves open the important planning option of victory for 
Ukraine.
  Then, when bad news comes, sometimes it is just not the whole story. 
The BBC reported the bad news that Russian forces were already inside 
the city of Irpin. Well, there is a little bit more to the story than 
that.
  A Ukrainian army officer said that Ukrainian forces were waiting for 
civilians to evacuate Irpin before ``we start to clear the city of 
Russians.''

       They don't have enough provisions--food, water. They don't 
     have a lot of gasoline. They will get tired, and then we will 
     go and drive them out.

  Well, it appears that that counteroffensive is underway right now, as 
we speak.
  As I close, I think all of our hearts and prayers go to the Ukrainian 
troops, who are trying to drive those Russians out of Irpin and out of 
Ukraine.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.


 Remembering Brent Renaud, Pierre Zakrzewski, and Oleksandra Kuvshynova

  Mr. BROWN. Madam President, over the course of just 3 days, the world 
lost three talented, tenacious journalists to Vladimir Putin's war 
crimes and brutal invasion of Ukraine.
  Brent Renaud was a Peabody Award-winning documentary filmmaker who 
was working to tell the stories of Putin's war when he was fatally shot 
in the Kyiv suburb of Irpin on Sunday.
  Then, on Monday, two more journalists with FOX News lost their lives 
when their vehicle came under fire just outside of Kyiv. A cameraman 
and veteran war reporter, Pierre Zakrzewski, was killed. He had been 
reporting in Ukraine since February.

[[Page S1211]]

  We also lost Ukrainian journalist Oleksandra ``Sasha'' Kuvshynova, 
who was serving as a consultant for FOX's team in Ukraine. She was just 
24 years old.
  Their colleague, correspondent Benjamin Hall, was also injured, and 
he remains in the hospital.
  Journalists know they face danger when they report from war zones. 
They put themselves in harm's way to tell the world the true stories 
that we need to hear.
  Today, the Presiding Officer from Minnesota joined me and dozens and 
dozens of others to see the video, the pictures, and the photos of the 
war in Ukraine, which were shown to us by President Zelenskyy. Those 
pictures--many of them--were taken by very courageous journalists who 
risked their own lives. They bring us the unvarnished truth, unfiltered 
by government propaganda, at the times when we need it most. They are 
committed to basic ideals of truth, accuracy, and transparency--so 
committed that they put their lives on the line to make sure the world 
knows what is happening. Their commitment to these ideals only makes 
their deaths that much more tragic.
  Today, three families and so many colleagues are grieving for these 
three journalists, grieving losses that cannot be replaced. They 
shouldn't have to.
  This war was started by a man with no regard for the freedom of the 
press or basic human rights; a man who is a former KGB agent and has 
open contempt and hostility toward real reporters, toward real 
journalism, toward free speech; a man who presides over a regime 
wherein journalists are killed with impunity.
  According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 28 journalists 
have been killed in Russia since Putin came to power 20 years ago, and 
10 are currently in prison simply for telling the truth, for doing 
their jobs. According to Reporters Without Borders, Russia ranks 150 
out of 199 countries for press freedom. They are actually behind 
Afghanistan and South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
  Last October, the United States and 18 other countries issued a 
statement, warning of ``the Russian government's intensifying 
harassment of independent journalists and media outlets in Russia.''
  In 2020, the Russian Government began labeling many outside 
journalists as ``media foreign agents''--a term reminiscent of the 
worst of the Cold War.
  It is not just foreign journalists; Putin's government has applied 
the ``media foreign agent'' label to independent Russian outlets in the 
country or to those operating near the country's border--Russian 
reporters themselves. It goes against all of our values. It is the kind 
of authoritarianism that the Ukrainian people bravely fight every day 
now. They don't want their country to turn into a place where reporters 
fear for their lives, where journalists can't tell the public the 
truth. Journalists' entire job is to ask questions, to challenge 
powerful interests, to--shall we say--afflict the comfortable.

  Reporters put their safety and--as we saw with these three brave 
journalists in Ukraine--their lives on the line, whether it is covering 
floods and hurricanes in the United States or traveling the globe to 
bring us the stories of war zones.
  We depend on reporters in my State and around the world to bring us 
the stories that impact our day-to-day lives and tell the stories that 
might not otherwise be told. They are too often under attack overseas 
increasingly. We recently had a President of the United States who 
attacked journalists in almost every stop.
  As we all stand with the people of Ukraine, let's recommit ourselves 
to fighting just as hard as they are for our values, for freedom of the 
press, for free speech. These three journalists made the ultimate 
sacrifice to show the world the heroism of the Ukrainian people. We 
pray that they are the last who have to do that.
  We recognize that President Putin has been shocked by two things: 
shocked by the heroism of the Ukrainian people--those fighting back, 
those brave journalists, those freedom fighters, those mothers and 
fathers and children who have so courageously stood up against Russia; 
he is also shocked by the way President Biden so effectively has put 
together an international coalition, not just for the countries you 
would expect, but Germany, and Finland, and Sweden, and Switzerland--
countries that have rarely chosen sides and stepped up the way that all 
of our countries have.
  And while doing this, we send our sympathy and our gratitude to the 
families of Brent Renaud, to Pierre Zakrzewski, to Oleksandra 
Kuvshynova. They died doing the vital heroic work they love. We have a 
better understanding of this invasion, of the war crimes being 
committed, of how it is affecting people's lives. We have a better 
understanding because of journalists like them, and we thank them from 
the bottom of our hearts.