John McCain, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, U.S. Senate Republican said on January 9, 2017, that he would join Democratic Senators Ben Cardin and Robert Menendez in introducing the legislation for “comprehensive” sanctions on Russia because of its alleged attempts to influence the 2016 Presidential election.
Recently John McCain has called Russia’s alleged hacking of the U.S. election “an unprecedented attack on our democracy”.
Senators state that the legislation to go beyond the sanctions on diplomats of the Russian Federation and intelligence agencies announced last week by the White House.
McCain with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar last month visited Estonia, Georgia, and Ukraine. They vowed to uphold and strengthen the sanctions on Russia and wished Trump would go to Ukraine as they did.
“I wish that he could have gone with me to Ukraine as we did, to Mariupol, and met with the brave Ukrainians that are serving,” stated Senator John McCain on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday
“They have slaughtered Ukrainians. They have dismembered a country. And I don’t think they are through. And they’ve done so in violation of all international norms of behavior. And they are putting strains on the post-World War II new world order, the likes of which we’ve never seen.
See also: U.S. not to support any agreement that does not guarantee full independence of Ukraine – John McCain
“I want a one/two punch against Russia. I want more sanctions to hit him harder, to deter what he did in our election and what he’s doing throughout the world, Putin. Secondly, I want to help the Baltic States, Ukraine, and Georgia more. We want more trainers on the ground, 365 days a year, a permanent U.S. military training presence in the Baltics, Ukraine, and Georgia,“ added Senator Lindsey Graham.
“You should let everybody know in America, Republicans and Democrats, that you’re going to make Russia pay a price for trying to interfere,” Graham stressed.
The report released Friday by The Office of the Director of National Intelligence said that Russian President Vladimir Putin led efforts to influence the 2016 Presidential election.
See also: The U.S. assesses Russian influence in US Elections, 2016
“We need to come to grips with it and get to the bottom of it and overall come up with a strategy in this new form of warfare that can basically harm our economy, harm our elections, harm our national security,” he said, according to Reuters.
The two also said they’re unsure if they will support Trump’s pick for Secretary of State, former Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson, who has been scrutinized for his ties to Putin. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding a meeting Wednesday to discuss his nomination, according to Reuters. Trump tweeted Saturday that improving relations with the Russia is a “good thing.”
See also: U.S. Senators announced more sanctions against Russia
