Bolton argues US must ‘act quickly’ on additional Ukraine aid or ‘Russia will win’

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton urged Congress to “act quickly” to support Ukraine amid its war with Russia, a conflict that he said may be forgotten by Americans as eyes shift to the war in Gaza.

“Ultimately, if we don’t help the Ukrainians out, ultimately Russia will win,” Bolton said in an interview with radio host John Catsimatidis on WABC 770 AM’s “Cats Roundtable” on Sunday. “I think we need to do a better job.” 

“I think people in the House and the Senate should press Biden harder to develop a winning strategy with Ukraine, not just preventing Ukraine from losing, but figure out how Ukraine can win,” he continued. 

While the Biden administration has stood by Ukraine with military support, some Republicans have turned against further spending, pointing to costs. That’s split the GOP and made Congressional approval of Ukraine support more difficult.

Similarly, demands from Republicans to pair Ukraine spending with border enforcement spending has made some Democrats hesitant.

The Ukrainian military has bogged down into an effective stalemate with Russia as winter begins and fighting slows. Its late summer counteroffensive saw little success, another factor that lowered enthusiasm for international support.

“I think the Ukrainians are worried about the possible loss of some American support,” Bolton continued. “I hope we’re going to find a way to give them the additional military support they need.”

Bolton said a rising worry is one of diplomatic victory for Russia, an agreement to keep the land in eastern Ukraine it has illegally annexed.

“I think we’ve got to be very concerned about a Russian diplomatic offensive that tries to win over at the bargaining table with the Russian troops can’t win on the battlefield,” he said. “That could come at any time, so we need to be ready for that.”