GOP Senator Floats U.S. ‘Troops on the Ground’ and Nuclear Strike Against Russia: ‘I Would Not Rule That Out’
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) told Neil Cavuto on Tuesday that the United States should keep all options available when dealing with potential Russian aggression against Ukraine. That even includes a first-use nuclear strike against.
The senator appeared on Fox News hours after a teleconference between presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin. The meeting was reportedly tense at times, which is not surprising given that U.S. officials are concerned about potential Russian military incursions into neighboring Ukraine. They are worried about a possible repeat of 2014, when Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimea.
“Senator, some of your Republican colleagues think that we should have troops in the region,” said Cavuto. “They never delineate exactly how many or that they’d be utilized in an outright confrontation with Russia over Ukraine. But their mere presence would be effective. What do you think of that?”
Wicker said he believes there are more than 200 uniformed U.S. soldiers in Ukraine right now. He added that “there’s certainly nothing wrong” with sending more U.S. troops to the country.
“I’ll you this, Neil,” said Wicker. “I would not rule out military action. I think we start making a mistake when we take options off the table. So I would hope the president keeps that option on the table.”
“What does military action mean, senator?” Cavuto pressed.
“Well, military action could mean that we standoff with our ships in the Black Sea and we rain destruction on Russian military capability,” the senator said. “It could mean that. It could mean that we participate – and I would not rule that out. I would not rule out American troops on the ground.”
He added that as a matter of policy, in the U.S. “we don’t rule out first-use nuclear action. We don’t think it will happen. But there’s certain things in negotiations – if you’re going to be tough – that you don’t take off the table. And so I think the president should say that everything is on the table.”
Earlier in the day, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan recounted part of Biden’s meeting with Putin.
“I will look you in the eye and tell you, as President Biden looked Putin in the eye and told him today, that things we did not do in 2014 we are prepared to do now,” Sullivan told reporters.
Watch above, via Fox News
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