By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Eastern Kansas Congressman Jake LaTurner has returned from a Congressional trip to Eastern Europe, observing first-hand the horrors of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
LaTurner participated in a bipartisan trip to Poland, Romania, and Moldova with a short time across the border into Ukraine.
LaTurner, a Republican, says the invasion of Ukraine has united both Congress and NATO.
“You’ve seen NATO, which is incredibly important for peace, you’ve seen them come together, find ways to work together like never before,” LaTurner tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “All the evil and the horror that Vladimir Putin has caused, there are some good things that are coming from this and I think a strong united West and a strong united NATO is one of those.
LaTurner says he got to see how the West has rallied to provide humanitarian aid to the four million-plus refugees from Ukraine, both governmental agencies and other charities. Poland alone has had to absorb 2 ½ million refugees fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.
LaTurner says he returned with a better idea of how the United States needs to respond.
“The three things that we absolutely must do: number one, continue to provide lethal weapons to the people of Ukraine so they can fight the Russians and push back on this naked, evil aggression that they’re experiencing right now; number two, we need to make sure that we continue to provide humanitarian aid for the folks that have been affected by this; and number three, we need to increase sanctions on Russia.”
LaTurner says he is concerned the war might broaden into other countries.
“I think we see an unhinged leader in Vladimir Putin, who has made a series of terrible decisions that have not worked out well for his country,” according to Putin. “And when you have an unhinged man who’s capable of this evil behavior, of course you have to be concerned about what is going to happen. That’s why it has been so important for the West to come together. We need to continue to do that and make sure that we’re standing firm to respond to anything that may potentially happen.”
LaTurner was one of three Republicans joined by three Democrats on the trip.
