DeSantis Says Further Involvement in Ukraine Conflict Not in US National Interest
15:14 GMT 14.03.2023 (Updated: 12:48 GMT 19.06.2023)
© AP Photo / Phil SearsFlorida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media in the Florida Cabinet following his State of the State address during a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives Tuesday, March 7, 2023, at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla.
© AP Photo / Phil Sears
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – Florida governor Ron DeSantis said that further involvement in the Ukrainian crisis goes against US national interests and Washington should focus on defending the homeland instead.
On Monday, conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson published on Twitter the responses given by potential presidential candidates to a six-point questionnaire on Ukraine.
"While the U.S. has many vital national interests – securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness within our military, achieving energy security and independence, and checking the economic, cultural, and military power of the Chinese Communist Party – becoming further entangled in a … dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them," DeSantis said in response to the questionnaire.
DeSantis, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, stated that the Biden administration's "blank check" policy on Ukraine distracts the country from what he considers to be the most pressing challenges.
The US should seek a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine conflict, DeSantis said, noting that he opposes deliveries of F-16s or other weapons that would allow Kiev to engage in offensive operations beyond its borders.
"These moves would risk explicitly drawing the United States into the conflict and drawing us closer to a hot war between the world’s two largest nuclear powers. That risk is unacceptable," he said.
DeSantis also noted that US policies have only driven Moscow closer to Beijing.