Republican members of Congress have been some of the strongest critics of Russia and its president, Vladimir V. Putin, keeping in line with their party’s traditional hawkish views about the United States’ role in upholding freedom and democracy around the globe. For years, that also translated into strong support within the G.O.P. for aiding Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.
But recently, as President Trump has cozied up to Mr. Putin and moved to normalize relations with Russia, Republicans who once vowed to uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty have stayed silent or moderated their tone. Mr. Trump has proposed that Ukraine trade away a 50 percent stake in its mineral resources, an idea its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, rejected last week.
On Wednesday, as representatives of the United States and Russia met for their most extensive conversation in years, to agree to work on a peace settlement without Ukraine’s presence and to discuss the possibility of American oil companies doing hundreds of billions of dollars in business in Russia, several Republican senators dismissed the talks as preliminary.
Here’s a look at some of their statements, then and now.
Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
What he said: “If you’re worried about being too provocative about Russia, stop worrying. Stop worrying. You are not too provocative — we need to up our game when it comes to Russia.”
Mr. Graham made those remarks last June while introducing a bipartisan resolution to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism, a label currently reserved for North Korea, Syria, Cuba and Iran.
He has often called Mr. Putin a “thug,” and previously compared him to Hitler. Mr. Graham has also called for the Russian leader to be assassinated: “Vladimir Putin is not a legitimate leader; he is a war criminal that needs to be dealt with.”