Rep. Estes to Newsmax: More Appropriations Needed for Ukraine

It's "heartwarming" to see the effort Ukraine is making in its fight against Russia, but the United States needs to do more to make sure that it's supporting the Ukrainians, Rep. Ron Estes said on Newsmax Monday.

He added that Congress needs to look at appropriating additional money to help in that fight after Russian President Vladimir Putin's ruthless attack.

"It's just a terrible thing that Putin's decided that he wants to violate all the standards of world order and civilized society and attack through this process," the Kansas Republican said on Newsmax's "National Report." "Congress and the executive branch as well, we need to make sure that we do a commitment and we support democracy around the world. When we talk about freedoms that we enjoy in America, other people want that as well."

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin traveled to Kyiv over the weekend, marking the highest-level trip there since Russia's invasion in late February.

While there, they told Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his advisers that the United States will provide another $300 million in military financing and has approved an additional $165 million in ammunition sales. Estes said that he doesn't know that there is a fixed amount that will be reached in the end, but it's important to keep supporting Ukraine.

"There have been some amazing technologies that have been put to use here, and we're seeing the successes that Ukrainians have had with the technologies out there, both from the United States as well as some of the other countries," he said. "It's great to be able to see good positive results out of all of that technology when it comes to our European allies as well and their contributions to aiding Ukrainians during this war."

He added that when it comes to the backing of the European allies, he "can't compliment them enough," as Putin has "united the civilized world."

Still, the United States needs to take a bigger leadership role, said Estes, noting that the Blinken/Austin trip came two weeks after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Kyiv.

"The United States is actually behind the curve," he said. "We knew last summer that the Ukrainians had asked for assistance. It was pretty common knowledge that the Russians were planning to invade, that they talked to China and China said we want you to wait until after the Olympics are over to do that."

The United States missed the opportunity to send the aid last fall, when it could have been put in place and have been ready, rather than waiting for Putin to start his invasion, said Estes.

"We need to make sure that we do a better job in the future of not losing sight of that opportunity that we could be more successful,' he said.

Estes, meanwhile, criticized the Biden administration for its handling of the immigration situation at the U.S-Mexico border, calling what has been going on since last January a "sad state."

"Every country deserves to have some rules around who enters the country," said Estes. "We are a nation of immigrants. We need to continue doing that in terms of allowing immigrants and we need to improve our immigration policies."

He added that it is the role of Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to help secure the nation's borders, but if he won't, "then we ought to get somebody in place that will do that."

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