() Two Republican senators have proposed a way for America’s NATO allies to help replenish military equipment and weapons the U.S. sends to Ukraine.
The PEACE Act, introduced by Sens. Jim Risch of Idaho and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, would create a Treasury Department fund into which NATO members would pay, with the money reimbursing U.S. assistance to Ukraine.
The idea comes as more Republicans lawmakers are following President Trump’s pivot toward Ukraine after Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively rebuffed U.S.-brokered attempts to end the war.
Publicly, Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Putin, a leader he previously has praised. The president has emphasized potential sanctions against Russia and has said NATO allies should assume a greater cost in helping Ukraine.
“President Trump has made clear that he will not tolerate Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin’s continued targeting of civilians in Ukraine. The death and destruction must end,” Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a news release this week.
Washington correspondent Kellie Meyer reports Risch and Wicker’s proposal could end up in a defense bill in the coming months.
