Republicans blame Biden for Russia’s actions in Ukraine

A number of Republican lawmakers blasted US President Joe Biden's handling of the Ukraine crisis and called on him to "change course" in his response to Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” in Ukraine’s Donbass region to “defend people” subjected to "genocide" there against government forces, stressing that Moscow has “no plans to occupy Ukrainian territory.”

"And for this we will strive for the demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine," Putin said.

Biden, however, called the Russian action an "unprovoked and unjustified attack," and the American media described it as the biggest assault on a European state since World War Two assault by Russia.

Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives blamed Biden for failing to deter Putin from sending forces into Ukraine.

"There's no doubt that weakness leads to war," Representative Brian Mast, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a Thursday morning tweet. "Putin once said the collapse of the Soviet empire was the 'greatest geopolitical catastrophe' of the past century for Russia. For America, President Biden may be the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of this century."

There's no doubt that weakness leads to war. Abandoning the policies of peace through strength, border security, energy independence and a self-reliant supply chain was not in the national or global best interest, and it has led to catastrophic foreign policy failures as well.

— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) February 24, 2022

‘Biden is the epitome of mediocrity’

Commenting on Mast’s tweet, American journalist Don DeBar said, “In my opinion, that is hyperbole. Biden isn't the greatest anything. He is the epitome of mediocrity, a reincarnation of Harry Truman, but further addled with dementia. And certainly a catastrophic figure at this moment where clarity and talent are needed to navigate the way out of the existential threat that he has stumbled into.”

“What Biden needs to do is direct NATO to withdraw from Ukraine immediately and tell President Volodymyr Zelensky to push the appropriate legislation through the Rada that was mandated by the Minsk accords. The UN should step in and oversee the de-Nazification of Ukraine,” added DeBar.

“And then the US should begin the long-overdue task of closing down the 800+ military bases it operates around the world and initiate the process of global demilitarization,” he commented to Press TV.

Biden spoke with President Zelenskiy as the Russian military operation began on Thursday morning, convened his National Security Council, and met with his counterparts from the Group of Seven allies to map out more severe responses.

"The president must change course or our deterrent posture will continue to collapse, chaos will continue to spread and eventually no one will trust America's promises or fear America's power," said Representative Mike Gallagher, a member of the House Armed Services Committee.

Sanctions from the United States and NATO failed to prevent the Russian military action in Ukraine.

"Almost 12 hours since Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine and the only response we've gotten from Biden is a Zoom call. Where's Biden? He's the leader of the free world. It's time to start acting like it," Representative Carlos Gimenez wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has expressed admiration for Putin, described the Russian leader's actions leading up to invasion as "genius," "smart" and "pretty savvy."

Senator Dan Sullivan, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, warned that Putin's action had changed the global landscape for the Americans and their Western allies.

"We must wake up to the fact that this new era of authoritarian aggression will likely be with us for decades. We need to face it with strategic resolve and confidence," the Alaska Republican said.

Defense Min. spox: Ukraine uses staged videos to accuse Russia, there's no threat to civilian population

Russia’s defense ministry says Ukraine

In 2014, Ukraine’s two regions of Donetsk and Lugansk – collectively known as the Donbass – were turned into self-proclaimed republics by ethnic Russians, leading to a bloody conflict between the government forces and armed separatists.

The conflict worsened following a wave of protests in Ukraine that led to the overthrow of a pro-Russia government, which was later replaced with a Western-backed administration. The majority in those areas refused to endorse the new administration. More than 14,000 people have been killed so far.

Ukraine, as well as the European Union (EU) and the United States, claim that Russia has a hand in the conflict in the Donbas. Moscow denies the allegation.

Russia and the US-led NATO have long been at odds over Ukraine. Moscow views NATO’s eastward expansion as a direct threat to its security. Recently, it had put forward a set of security proposals to de-escalate the tensions, including a guarantee that Ukraine would not join NATO, a demand that the alliance said was a non-starter.

Attacks are 'initial phase' of 'large-scale Russian invasion’

A senior unnamed US military official said on Thursday that Russia’s Thursday morning attacks on Ukraine are an “initial phase” of a “large-scale” invasion into the country.

“It is likely that you will see this unfold in multiple phases. How many? How long? We don't know. But what we're seeing are initial phases of a large-scale invasion,” the official told reporters in an off-camera call. 

“They’re making a move on Kyiv,” the official added. 

More than 100 Russian-launched missiles of various types were used in the “initial onslaught,” with short-range ballistic missiles being the primary weapon, the official said. 

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