Capito calls war in Ukraine "immoral and unjust"

Ukraine needs lethal military weapons and massive humanitarian now, not delayed by bureaucracy, a bipartisan group of 10 U.S. Senators who visited Poland and Germany over the weekend said.

 

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., was part of that delegation and said during a press conference broadcast on social media by the group when you travel and see the situation first-hand, you realize the urgency of what is happening.

 

“This is occurring in Europe, not in their backyard, but in their front yard,” she said of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

 

Capito called it an “immoral and unjust” war waged by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We can’t kid ourselves,” she said, and if Putin has successes, “would he stop there? Would this be the end of where his empire building would go? The NATO nations know the answer, and it is no.”

 

Capito said the Ukrainian people are doing a “magnificent job” and they were “underestimated” as the Russian troops were “overestimated.”

 

It boils downs the resolve of every man and woman in Ukraine and their willingness to fight to the end, she said, and it is encouraging to see all NATO countries “at the table” regarding Putin’s war and all have a “united front” to make the commitment to Ukraine.

 

But getting the weapons, including MIG29 jet fighters from Poland to Ukraine as well as more anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons, is crucial and there should be no delays.

 

“Every minute counts,” she said, agreeing with other members of the delegation that delays bring more deaths to the Ukrainian people.

 

Capito said it took a week just the pass the $800 million aid package, and such a delay is unacceptable.

 

“We don’t have a week or months,” said Sen. Angus King, I-Maine. “We have hours and days.”

 

King quoted Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt in saying, “We are the arsenal of democracy,” and the NATO countries have never been as united as they are today.

 

“We heard people talking about winning, not just holding them off … but to defeat Putin,” he said, and anything Putin takes now, “he will never be able to hold.”

 

But Ukraine needs those weapons to defend themselves and they should have already had them.

 

“We cannot allow Putin to continue to bomb shelters, hospitals, homes and humanitarian corridors,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. “We have to provide Ukraine with the means to prevent this bombardment.”

 

That includes those MIGs and additional anti-aircraft defense systems.

 

“Every moment, every hour, every day counts,” she said. “We do not have time for an endless debate and delays. If we delay, thousands more innocent Ukrainians will die.”

 

The delegation also met with the U.S. military soldiers and leaders who have been sent to Germany, Poland and other surrounding NATO nations.

 

“Our military is absolutely awesome,” Capito said, adding that they are prepared and ready to help in any way as well as stop any aggression into a NATO country.

 

That praise was echoed by other senators who all also agreed what an outstanding job the Polish people have done in taking care of refugees, who now total about 3 million.

 

“The logistical challenge of this is astonishing,” King said, adding there is also an estimated 6.5 million Ukrainians displaced within the country, meaning about 25 percent of Ukraine’s population are now refugees who have either left or stayed there.

 

They all have to be fed and housed and directed toward a destination.

 

King and others said the U.S. should streamline the process to allow refugees to come here.

Capito said they visited a refugee center in Poland near the Ukrainian border and about 6,000 meals a day were being served with volunteers pouring in to help out.

 

She talked to one refugee who told her: “I could not let my children listen to the sirens (bomb warnings) any more.”

 

The mother and her children are going to the UK, Capito said, but the mother did not want to go. She just wanted to return to Ukraine and resume a free and normal life.

 

But seeing what support these refugees have in Poland left an impression.

 

“All of us have such admiration for what the Poles are doing,” she said.

 

“To me, the most memorable occurrence on this trip was the one that I had with a young mother with two children,” Collins said, and the woman told her she was forced to leave to keep her children safe.

 

“She was leaving the only country she has ever known,” leaving everything in her life behind to keep her children safe.

 

“The only way we can end this humanitarian crisis is to provide Ukraine with the lethal military aid and humanitarian support they need to to end this war,” she said, “this war of aggression that Putin is waging on a free, sovereign and democratic country.”

 

Senators also said more sanctions are needed, including going after the personal wealth of Putin and use what money is eventually gathered from all Russian oligarchs to help pay for rebuilding Ukraine.

 

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, who led the delegation, said they also met with NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and all are committed to doing everything they can to help.

“They can and they will win this war,” she said of Ukraine. “America cannot be pushed around and we cannot hold back, especially at this critical time.”

 

Capito said there is no substitute for first-hand experience of witnessing what is happening and speaking to those directly involved.

 

“There is nothing like seeing this and this is what brings the urgency you hear in all our voices,” she said.