Graham’s death strips Ukraine of a key Trump ally in Washington
Why it matters: Graham had just backed a Russia sanctions bill and made his 10th wartime trip to Ukraine before he died.
The death of Sen. Lindsey Graham leaves Ukraine without one of its most effective advocates in President Donald Trump’s orbit as Kyiv presses Washington for more military support. In the days before he died, the South Carolina Republican met President Volodymyr Zelensky, visited a drone factory in Ukraine and helped secure Senate agreement to move a Russia sanctions bill. Graham had made 10 trips to Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion and also worked at a NATO summit in Turkey to ease tensions between the alliance and Trump. His loss could complicate Kyiv’s push for Patriot missile support and other backing from an administration that has had a strained relationship with Zelensky.