After talks with Zelenskyy and Macron, US senators warn: Putin 'is preparing for more war'

Arab Times

2 days ago

PARIS, June 2, (AP): Russian President Vladimir Putin is stalling at the peace table while preparing a new military offensive in Ukraine, two senior U.S. senators warned Sunday, arguing that the next two weeks could shape the future of a war that has already smashed cities, displaced millions and redrawn Europe's security map.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic Sen Richard Blumenthal spoke to The Associated Press in Paris after meeting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and touring neighborhoods shattered by what they called the worst Russian bombardments since the full-scale invasion began. In Paris for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron - who they say is "100% aligned' with them on the war - the senators warned the window to prevent a renewed assault is closing.
A sweeping US sanctions bill could be the West's last chance to choke off the Kremlin's war economy, they said - adding that they hope their firsthand findings will shift momentum in Washington and help bring a skeptical President Donald Trump on board. "What I learned on this trip was he's preparing for more war,' Graham said of Putin.
Blumenthal called the sanctions proposed in legislation "bone-crushing' and said it would place Russia's economy "on a trade island.' "It is crunch time for Putin and for the world because Russia is mounting a new offensive,' he said. At the heart of their push is a bipartisan sanctions bill, backed by nearly the entire US Senate but still facing uncertain odds in Washington. It would impose 500% tariffs on countries that continue buying Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports - targeting nations like China and India that account for roughly 70% of Russia's energy trade and bankroll much of its war effort.
Graham called it "the most draconian bill I've ever seen in my life in the Senate." "The world has a lot of cards to play against Putin,' he said. "We're going to hit China and India for propping up his war machine.' With peace talks yielding little and Trump's approach to Ukraine highly uncertain, Graham and Blumenthal have stepped into the breach - blunt emissaries on a lonely mission.
Political opposites moving in lockstep, they're crossing Europe, and the aisle, with the moral urgency of two men trying to forestall another Russian offensive before it's too late. Peace talks are scheduled to resume Monday in Istanbul. But Ukrainian officials say Moscow has yet to submit a serious proposal - a delay both senators described as deliberate and dangerous.