Source: United States Senator for Florida Marco Rubio
Miami, FL — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined The Lead with Jake Tapper to discuss the latest on Russia and Ukraine. See below for excerpts and watch the full interview here.
On reports that separatist movements in eastern Ukraine have asked Putin for help fighting the Ukrainians:
“There is a lot of activity going on in Ukraine tonight. All the signs point to something unusual happening, compared to other days… We’re in the middle of something here tonight that is a little bit different than previous nights.”
On the next steps involved in a full-scale Russian invasion:
“I’ve long believed that Putin would conduct this attack… All the boxes he would check in this plan — he’s been checking them.
“…He’s made what is pretty much an irreversible decision at this point… You saw with the cyberattacks today, the implanting of malware in key systems. I think the next thing you would probably see them do is potentially seize a couple of airports so they can fly equipment directly into the country.
“I think you could also see them target air defense systems, [weapons] and ammo depots…
“This will move pretty quickly once it starts, and we’re going to lose some insight into it from the perspective of the media, because I think you’re going to see disruptions in social media, telecommunications, internet connectivity, things of that nature.
On whether a diplomatic resolution is possible to end the Russia-Ukraine crisis:
“I don’t think the diplomatic window was ever open. [Putin] made demands that he knew could not be met. He made unreasonable demands. He made demands that he knew the West could never agree to.
…
“I think, frankly, Putin has been planning this. It didn’t start last month or last week. This has been going on for over a year, and he felt that this was the opportune time. They have elections in France. The U.S. has got its own issues domestically and [is] focused on China. Energy prices are high. Germany has a new leader. The U.K. is going through some tumult in their political process. I think he felt like this was the ideal moment to take action.”
On what an occupation of Ukraine will cost Russia:
“Russia has the military ability to take Ukraine. [But if it does,] it has to govern it…. If any nation on Earth has learned how expensive and difficult it is to occupy a country… that may not want you there, … it’s us….
“[Putin] may very well occupy large portions of the country, but he’s not going to pacify it. Ukrainians are going to fight him for a long time, and there’s going to be a lot of dead Russians going home, and he will have to explain to their moms why they died.”
On the Biden Administration’s response to Russia:
“I wish we would have imposed the strongest possible sanctions, on the two biggest Russian banks, in the middle of Putin’s speech. I’m not a big believer in the ‘sanction as we go’ process. Beyond that, I think [the Biden Administration is] making the right decisions about reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank….
“At the same time, I think it is incredibly important that the U.S. return to a policy of producing domestic energy at a higher level…. Unfortunately, the Biden Administration has cut back on it. It’s these high energy prices that have given Putin … tremendous leverage over the whole situation…. So I hope we return to [greater energy independence].
“I [also] hope we will not lose focus on the Indo-Pacific region, which is where the critical threats to [America] in the 21st century lie….
“And I would say this: We should recognize the Ukrainian government, even if it happens to be in exile or some remote portion of the country, and we should help them…. They’re not asking for American soldiers. They’re just asking for the weapons to fight for themselves and their families.”
On the United States’ role in the Russia-Ukraine crisis:
“The United States is the most powerful country in the world, [but] it is not all powerful.
“These are terrible things that are happening, and I wish we could do more to stop it and prevent it from happening. Unfortunately, evil people do evil things in this world, and they should pay a price for it so that it doesn’t happen in other places…
“America can do a lot to help Ukraine, but the future of Ukraine is in the hands of the Ukrainian people — who, I think, are prepared to fight and make this a really difficult and painful experience for Putin in the long term.”
On America’s interest in Ukraine and other foreign matters:
“We always owe an obligation to the people watching to explain…why does this matter to Americans?
“We now live in a world where countries can decide, ‘That [land] belongs to us and we’re going to invade and take it.’ The world is going to get really messy, really fast, and that’s going to impact us here.
“Ukraine is a pretty substantial food producer of wheat and corn. That will have an impact on the global food market which, ultimately, would have an impact on us as well.
“They are the leading supplier of neon gas for our nascent semiconductor industry here in the United States. That’s going to be cut off.
“There was an accidentally leaked…directive that the Chinese government gave to its official state reporters talking about why they needed to support Russia. Because one day, [they] will need Russia’s support when it comes time to deal with Taiwan…
“The Chinese are watching this very carefully to figure out what happens when you take a place that you claim belongs to you that doesn’t want to be a part of you. They’re watching this to see what the price you pay is…”