Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis once signed a letter alongside Adam Kinzinger supporting the U.S.-supported 2013 coup in Ukraine that urged the Obama administration to take action against “the Kremlin.”
DeSantis’s signature is featured prominently alongside those of Kinzinger, Tom Cotton, Tom Marino, George Holding, Randy Weber, and Scott Perry. The letter itself urges then-Secretary of State John Kerry to stand with the European Union.
“We are writing to express our deep concern over the current situation in Ukraine,” the Congressmen wrote, before celebrating the large protests against Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich following his refusal to sign an “economic accord with the European Union.”
“It is deeply troubling,” wrote DeSantis and his colleagues, for Ukraine to “cast aside years of positive bilateral talks that would move Ukraine closer to EU integration and strengthen their young democracy.”
Quoting anonymous European Union leaders, DeSantis, Kinzinger, and the other Republicans warned that they “feel this development is a direct results of economic threats delivered by the Kremlin.”
Then the letter, which was written and sent just months before the Ukrainian Revolution that many observers say precipitated the current conflict, urges the United States to stand by Ukraine and the European Union against Russia.
“The United States must stand with our allies in the EU and demonstrate our desire to see Ukraine continue on their path towards integration with Europe,” DeSantis, Kinzinger, and the other men wrote. “We cannot allow President Putin to undermine these efforts through the threats of economic retaliation or implied force.”
While DeSantis has remained largely silent on what his foreign policy platform would look like as a presidential candidate, his past support for the Ukraine Revolution has caused some to wonder if he would run as a hawk, compared to Trump’s desire to broker peace between Moscow and Kiev.
The former president has repeatedly promised to pursue peace talks if reelected in 2024, and recently promised supporters he could broker a peace “within 24 hours” of taking office.
This news and commentary by Tom Pappert originally appeared on Valiant News.
