WASHINGTON, DC – Greek-American Congressman John Sarbanes on March 22 released a statement on standing with Ukraine. The full text of the letter follows:

“In his powerful address to Congress, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged our country to do more to protect freedom, democracy and the lives of innocent Ukrainians. Together with our allies, we must answer his call.

Over the last two weeks, Congress and President Biden have taken important steps to stand with Ukraine and defend global democracy, including:

Revoking permanent normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus – last week, I voted to respond to Russia’s continued attacks and Belarus’ complicity by suspending permanent normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus which will further isolate Russia from the world economy.

Sending military supplies to Ukraine: President Biden announced an additional $800 million in security assistance to supply the Ukrainian people with arms and equipment to fight for their country, bringing the total amount of funding our country has allocated to defending Ukraine to $1 billion in just the last two weeks.

Providing robust humanitarian and military assistance: The bipartisan Fiscal Year 2022 omnibus spending package, which I was proud to vote for and see President Biden sign into law, allocated $13.6 billion for humanitarian and military assistance to Ukraine. The Administration is also working to expedite additional assistance to Ukraine from our allies.

Banning Russian oil and gas imports: President Biden announced, and I voted to pass in the House, a ban on Russian oil and gas imports to increase economic pressure on Russia. This can have an effect on energy prices here at home and I know people are feeling really pinched at the gas pump. That’s why we must use every tool at our disposal to address the current spike in costs. I applaud President Biden for authorizing the release of millions of barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve and for cracking down on any price-gouging that may be occurring in the energy industry.

I joined WBAL-TV to discuss how our country can and should support Ukrainian refugees right now.

The United States must stand firmly with our allies in support of Ukraine. I will continue to work to safeguard democracy at home and abroad.

Sincerely,

John P. Sarbanes

Maryland’s Third Congressional District

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