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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast issued the following statement upon the third anniversary since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine.

“Today’s three-year anniversary marking the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is no cause for Russian celebration. It marks the anniversary of the largest tactical and strategic blunder in Russian history. While Russia has brought brutality against civilians and soldiers alike, raping women and kidnapping children, Ukraine is slaughtering hundreds of thousands of Russian conscripts who have invaded their country. Ukraine is likewise annihilating the soldiers Vladimir Putin imported from Kim Jong Un’s North Korea and overcoming the financial and military support flowing from China and Iran. President Trump has recognized the need to end this carnage. He will never be Neville Chamberlain, he will not seek a premature peace that allows the enemy to regroup, and he will settle for nothing less than sustained peace backed by a Europe which is capable of defending itself from Russia. Europe must meet the moment and match Russian military spending and recruitment. Europe must realize that for our alliance to be the strongest in history, America needs a Europe that can hold its own.”

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