During remarks on the Senate floor Monday, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) spoke about Russian President Vladimir Putin rejecting Ukrainian ceasefire terms.
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00:00Madam President, I come to the floor today to add my voice to the many who are commending
00:07President Trump as he works toward peace in Ukraine.
00:12The President recently gave the aggressor, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, every chance
00:19to put down his guns and end the killing.
00:22And he's done that over and over.
00:24But our President is now showing that he will not wait on Mr. Putin forever.
00:30Every time Ukraine and the United States have extended the hand of peace, President Putin
00:37has responded with aggression.
00:39With one hand, Vladimir Putin always makes a show of participating in peace talks.
00:45With the other, he has repeatedly bombed civilians, a clear war crime, a war crime, including
00:55just on Sunday of last week, Palm Sunday, when he bombed worshipers and children playing
01:05on a public playground.
01:09On Saturday, the day before yesterday, the President took Mr. Putin to task for this brutality.
01:16And I commend the President for doing that.
01:19The President said, and I quote, there was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles
01:24into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days.
01:28It makes me think that maybe he doesn't want to stop the war.
01:32He's just tapping me along and has to be dealt with differently.
01:39End quote.
01:40Thank you, Mr. President, for saying that.
01:43One of the President's staunchest supporters in this body echoed that statement just yesterday.
01:52Senator Kennedy of Louisiana said, and I quote, Putin thinks that America has taken the bullet
01:59train to Chumptown.
02:02Chumptown.
02:02The President is right, and Senator Kennedy of Louisiana is right.
02:11There is one man to blame for this war.
02:14If Vladimir Putin puts down his guns, there would be no more war.
02:21If Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine put down their guns, there would be no more Ukraine.
02:28That is a simple truth, and I appreciate the President expressing that forcefully.
02:36And then today, General Jack Keene, a very respected observer and an officer and official
02:45in the Institute for the Study of War, expressed essentially the same sentiments as Donald Trump
02:52expressed day before yesterday and as Senator Kennedy expressed yesterday.
02:59On Fox News this morning, General Keene gave the President due credit for pursuing peace
03:08in Ukraine.
03:09The General noted that President Trump understandably seems to be running out of patience with Putin's
03:15intransigence.
03:17I know that many members of this chamber are running out of patience, too.
03:21General Keene then asked a simple question.
03:25Which side has shown that it wants a peace deal?
03:30Both sides claim they want peace, but what is the evidence?
03:35And here's the truth.
03:36The truth is that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has shown that he is interested in peace.
03:43He has negotiated at length with the administration.
03:47Ukraine and its President agreed to a 30-day ceasefire.
03:51Vladimir Putin rejected the idea.
03:55Instead, Putin initiated an agreement to halt the tax on energy infrastructure, and then
04:02he immediately violated that agreement.
04:06Mr. Putin did.
04:08Worst of all, throughout the so-called peace talks, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly taken the
04:15lives of non-combatant civilians, and pummeled residential neighborhoods with bombs.
04:22Every statement Mr. Putin makes should be viewed through that lens.
04:30President Trump is right.
04:32Too many people are dying.
04:34And that includes the Russian people, who are also suffering.
04:38The Russian people do not deserve to live under a vicious, larcenous, trillionaire president
04:49for life, like Vladimir Putin.
04:52So far, only one side has worked to end the violence.
04:57This weekend, the Trump administration set a timeline for Vladimir Putin to choose peace.
05:02And I commend them for it.
05:03I commend Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said the President will decide soon whether
05:09Putin is interested in actually working toward a just end to the war.
05:14All signs indicate the answer will be no.
05:19The real answer from Vladimir Putin will be no.
05:22Just this morning, the Russian Foreign Ministry published words straight from the mouth of Russian
05:29Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
05:32In no uncertain terms, this high-ranking Russian official rejected President Trump's peace deal.
05:39So this is a pivotal week.
05:41I look forward to the President's decision.
05:46And I would remind him and my fellow colleagues, Putin cannot be allowed to drag the United States
05:52along.
05:54The United States Senate is ready to back President Trump as he stands up to Putin on a bipartisan
06:02basis.
06:03Fifty senators, 25 Republicans, and 25 Democrats recently introduced a bill.
06:10It's called the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025.
06:14Who says there's not bipartisanship in the Senate?
06:18Twenty-five Republicans and 25 Democrats have introduced legislation that would introduce primary
06:25and secondary sanctions against Russia and against actors supporting Russia's aggression
06:34in Ukraine, imposing real consequences on Putin if he continues refusing to engage in good-faith
06:41talks with Ukraine and the United States.
06:45And he's never engaged in any talks that were good-faith.
06:51Putin repeatedly bombs civilians.
06:54He's forged a trail of broken promise.
06:57He and only he chose, unprovoked, to start the largest land war in Europe since World War II.
07:10Putin and only Putin did that.
07:12Where in any of this has there been a showing of good faith?
07:15On Saturday, the president suggested that Putin, quote, has to be dealt with differently, unquote.
07:22I applaud this.
07:24My Senate colleagues applaud this.
07:27Experienced military professionals like General Keene applaud this.
07:33The president has been exceedingly patient, but he is correctly stating that there should be an end.
07:40It's time to treat Putin like the deceptive, cunning war criminal that he is.
07:49Thank you, Madam President.
07:52And I yield the floor.