DeSantis Labels Russia’s War Against Ukraine a ‘Territorial Dispute’

Florida Governor: The United States should not get further involved in European conflict

Ron DeSantis (R.), Florida governor, called for less U.S. involvement. “territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia,” This is a break with traditional Republican foreign policy voices that have advocated staunch United States support of Ukraine.

DeSantis said in a statement to Tucker Carlson, Fox News host, that “while the U.S. has many vital national interests … becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them.” DeSantis did not call for a U.S. military freeze or humanitarian aid to Ukraine, but said that the United States could not provide advanced weapons such as missiles and aircraft.

“F-16s and long-range missiles should therefore be off the table,” DeSantis said. “These moves would risk explicitly drawing the United States into the conflict and drawing us closer to a hot war between the world’s two largest nuclear powers. That risk is unacceptable.”

DeSantis’s call to less U.S. involvement Ukraine has set up a contest between 2024 Republican presidential candidate as they seek to stand out on the foreign-policy front. The governor’s remarks appear to put him somewhere between former president Donald Trump, who has also opposed intervention in Ukraine, and declared presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who has been a strong supporter of aid for Ukraine—and are similar to the Biden administration’s position of support for Ukraine that stops short of F-16s and long-range missiles.

Trump is widely believed to be the frontrunner for Republican nomination. Trump stated earlier this week he would push both sides to reach a deal.

“I could have negotiated,” Trump Telled Sean Hannity talks about his radio show. “At worst, I could have made a deal to take over something, you know, there are certain areas that are Russian-speaking areas, right, like, but you could have worked a deal. And now Ukraine is just being blown to smithereens.”

Trump and DeSantis disagree with the rest of the declared-and-likely-to-announce Republican field. This includes Haley, ex-vice president Mike Pence and ex-secretary of state Mike Pompeo.

Haley has already started campaigning and is a strong advocate for U.S. assistance to Ukraine.

Carlson was also informed by Haley. “opposing Russia in Ukraine a vital American national strategic interest.” She stressed that the United States would not cease supporting Ukraine until war ends.

“Russia’s objective is to take over all of Ukraine by military force. Our objective should be to help the Ukrainians prevent that from happening,” She said. “If Russia stopped fighting and left Ukraine, the war would end instantly, and America would no longer need to play a role. If Ukraine stopped fighting, Ukraine would no longer exist, and other countries would legitimately fear they would be next.”

This support should not, however. “blank checks” Or “American troops,” Haley.

Pence, who was a Trump aide, has not yet declared his candidacy.

“While some in my party have taken a somewhat different view, let me be clear: There can be no room in the leadership of the Republican Party for apologists for Putin,” Pence . “There can only be room for champions of freedom.”

Pompeo, while he hasn’t officially declared his candidacy yet, has been a strong advocate for Ukraine. He  In January, the United States should take this action “everything the Ukrainians are asking us to do. They haven’t asked us to send our soldiers. They haven’t asked for the 82nd Airborne. They’ve simply said, provide us the stuff we need. And it is their lives that are at risk.”

Vivek, a tech executive, said that the war in Ukraine was a distraction from his efforts to counter China.

“The main thing should be the main thing: focus on China,” Ramaswamy  On Twitter, February 27, 2012. “China wants the Ukraine war to last as long as possible to deplete Western military capacity before invading Taiwan. It’s working: we think we *look* stronger by helping Ukraine, but we actually *become* weaker vs. China.”