[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 46 (Thursday, March 12, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1035-S1036]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            Iran and Ukraine

  Mr. President, the sacrifices of Sergeant Pennington and six other 
fallen comrades in the war with Iran have not been in vain. For nearly 
half a century, Iran has waged war on us. In fewer than 2 weeks, U.S. 
and partner operations have degraded Iran's military, its missile 
threat, as well as its capacity to spread violence and terror. And in 
doing so, they have delivered a small measure of justice for the 
hundreds of

[[Page S1036]]

U.S. personnel killed over the years by the Iranian regime.
  There has been plenty of discussion about where this war fits among 
U.S. strategic priorities. I hope the administration will be more 
forthcoming on that very soon.
  But some critics want to evaluate the war with Iran without even 
acknowledging the wider context, as if combating rampant terror and 
violence from China's leading source of oil and Russia's leading source 
of attack drones has nothing, somehow, to do with peace in Europe or 
deterrence in the Indo-Pacific.
  I have called out this fiction before, and I have urged colleagues 
and decisionmakers in successive administrations not to overlook the 
ways our adversaries' threats to America's interests are actually all 
aligned together.
  The PRC is not a neutral observer in the Middle East. Beijing has an 
interest in the steady flow of cheap Iranian oil to the tune of 1.4 
million barrels just last year.
  And as Iran's proxy wars, missile program, and nuclear ambitions 
taxed our attention and resources, the PRC benefited strategically as 
well as financially from the distraction.
  Russia, they are not a disinterested party either. Moscow and Tehran, 
together, propped up the brutal Assad regime in Syria, allowing them to 
project power deeper into the Middle East and the Mediterranean. A 
shadow fleet has continued to help both regimes evade Western 
sanctions.
  And needless to say, Russia's war conquest in Ukraine would look 
quite different without a steady supply of Iranian attack drones. 
Iranian drones in Ukrainian skies have already made the connections 
between America's adversaries crystal clear. But now, public reporting 
also indicates Russia may be providing intelligence for Iran's attacks 
all across the Gulf.
  The President's all-purpose emissary Steve Witkoff has downplayed 
these reports and replayed Russia's strenuous denial of any such 
intelligence sharing. And for the sake of U.S. servicemembers, I 
certainly hope that is true.
  However, unlike Mr. Witkoff, I am not at all inclined to ``take the 
Russians at their word.''
  Instead, I have warned successive Presidents to take the Russia-
Iranian axis more seriously. I urged President Biden to hold Iran to 
account for underwriting terror and killing Americans. But a disastrous 
withdrawal from Afghanistan emboldened Tehran and Moscow, both.
  I supported a national security supplemental, even though I thought 
President Biden's approach to Russia and Iran was entirely too weak. I 
did it not only because supporting Ukraine was in our strategic 
interests but because these funds helped replenish American stockpiles 
and start restoring our own defense industrial base.
  So if the Senate receives a request for supplemental appropriations, 
I hope our colleagues who oppose the President's use of force against 
Iran will still see an overdue opportunity to invest in urgent and 
strategic defense priorities.
  Weakness invites challenge, but our adversaries have sought to weaken 
and undermine America regardless of who the Commander in Chief is.
  I have underscored American's interest in a just and lasting end to 
Russia's war many times before. But let's say for the sake of argument 
that you are still inclined to treat the outcome of the largest land 
war in Europe since 1945 as somebody else's concern.
  Well, Russia's support for Iran is not somebody else's concern. 
Russia is aiding Iranian attacks against Americans. That is very much 
our concern. If you believe that the U.S. role in the war in Ukraine is 
as a neutral mediator between equally culpable belligerents, this 
development might be tough to square; likewise with the fact that 
Ukraine was the first foreign government to voice unequivocal support 
of U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran.
  Unlike Moscow, Kyiv is not asking that we just take its word. Let's 
look at the actions.
  Right now--right now--teams of Ukraine's top experts in drone warfare 
are on the ground in the Gulf helping us--helping American allies in 
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE--defend against Iranian drone attacks. 
Many of the Ukrainian systems that Gulf allies are eager to procure 
were first offered to the United States many months ago.
  Unfortunately, until death began to rain from the skies over U.S. 
facilities in the Gulf 12 days ago, it was my understanding that these 
discussions had gone nowhere fast.
  So administration officials were right to identify Ukraine as the 
``Silicon Valley of warfare.'' But other officials have slowed or 
paused assistance to these same brave innovators and have missed 
opportunities to apply Ukraine's technology and tactics to our own 
planning.
  The previous administration, too, failed to adapt and harvest 
Ukraine's lessons.
  The past is behind us. To learn from the world's foremost experts in 
drone warfare, we have to go beyond words. Our security assistance to 
Ukraine is a critical tool to help end Russia's war on terms favorable 
to the West. It is an investment in tapping cutting-edge technological 
and industrial capacity, and the return on investment is totally worth 
it.
  America is stronger, America is more secure when we stand with our 
friends and stand up to our enemies.
  This is not murky; it is not ambiguous. It is an opportunity for 
moral clarity and strategic wisdom. No better friend, no worse enemy.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.