Ohio's two U.S. senators are pushing for more American aid to bolster the Ukrainian military. M.L. Schultze of member station WKSU in Kent reports.
Last week, Ohio’s Republican Sen. Rob Portman and Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin authored a letter to President Obama calling for the administration to ship radar, anti-tank weapons and other equipment to Ukraine.
Portman says the shipments already have the legal authorization from Congress, and delays are dangerous.
“If we do not see more support for Ukraine, I really worry that you’re going to see increased escalation of violence from these Russian-backed rebels in Ukraine, more people dying, and I think you will see the possibility of Russia continuing to do what they did in Crimea, which is effectively take over parts of Ukraine.” :18
The letter was signed by 15 senators, including Ohio’s Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. A report released last week by eight former defense and foreign-policy officials called Russian involvement in Ukraine “the gravest threat to European security in more than 30 years.”