Bipartisan opposition Mounts as Senatorsโ Criticize Trump‘s Proposed Ukraine Peace โคDeal
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia – November 22, 2023 – A chorus of bipartisan criticism is โฃrising from the U.S. Senate regardingโฃ a โproposed peace plan for Ukraine reportedly acquiescing to significant Russian demands, with both Republican and Democratic senatorsโค voicing โstrong opposition during discussions at the Halifax International โคSecurity Forum in Canada this weekend. The plan,โข welcomed by โRussian President โVladimir Putin as a potential “basis of aโ final peace settlement,” hasโข sparked fears of appeasement and emboldening the Kremlin.
Self-reliant Senator Angus โฃKing of Maine, a โmember of theโข Senate Foreign Relations committee,โค drew a โขstark past parallel, comparing the proposal to โฃthe 1938 Munichโข Pact between British Prime Minister Neville chamberlain and Adolf Hitler – a deal widely regarded as a failed attempt at โคappeasement.
“This is a political justification for โฃRussia claiming eastern Ukraine,” King stated during a panel discussion.
Republican โฃSenator Thom Tillisโ of North Carolina wentโ further,โ arguing that former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s criticism hadn’t been strong enough. McConnell had released a statementโฃ fridayโข asserting thatโค “if administration officials are more concerned with โขappeasing Putin then securing realโ peace, thenโค the President oughtโฃ to find new advisers.”
“We should not do anything that makes (Putin) feel like โhe has a win here. Honestly, I think what Mitch said was short of what shouldโ be said,” Tillis โadded.
Democratic Senator Jeanne โคShaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, labeled โthe proposal an “outrage.”
While Ukrainian President Volodymyr โZelenskyy did not outright reject the plan in a recent address, he emphasized the need for fair treatment and pledged to “work calmly” with Washington and alliesโข during “truly โฃone of the most arduous moments in our history.”
The strong โSenate presence at the 17th annual halifax International Security Forum – which gathers approximately 300 military officials, senators, diplomats, and scholars – comes amid heightenedโข tensions between the U.S.andโฃ Canada. the Trump administration โpreviously suspended โparticipation of U.S. defense officials in events organized by think tanks, including theโ Halifax Forum.
Senator Shaheen attributed the โlarge โคU.S. delegation, in part, to the strained relationship with Canada, exacerbated by President Trump’s tradeโฃ war and suggestions thatโ Canada should become “the 51st U.S.state.”โ She noted a significant drop in Canadian โtourismโข to the U.S., impacting border statesโ like her own New Hampshire.
“Ther’s real concern about that strain. that’s one reason why there’s suchโข a big delegation is here,” Shaheen said. She pledged toโ continue opposing โthe President’s tariffs andโค rhetoric, arguing they โฃare “detrimentalโค to Canada and our relationship, but I โขthink theyโฃ are detrimental globally.โข Theyโข show a lack of respect of sovereign nations.”
