Letter to President Joseph R. Biden - Bipartisan Lawmakers Call on Administration to Help Protect Ukrainian Airspace with Weapons Systems, Planes

Letter

Dear Mr. President,
We, as a bipartisan group of 15 representatives, write to urge continued U.S. commitment to the sovereignty of Ukraine and the freedom of the Ukrainian people in the face of Russia's ongoing invasion. As the Administration considers next steps to support the Ukrainian government and to counter Russian aggression, we strongly believe that the U.S. must provide additional defense materiel to Ukrainians protecting their nation, strengthen economic sanctions directed at Russia, and increase urgently needed humanitarian aid to Ukraine. With this in mind, we respectfully request that you implement the following policies:
1. Support Air Defense Capabilities: Despite heroic and skillful resistance by Ukrainian forces, Russia currently retains air superiority over Ukraine. Russia's advantage in this domain could soon develop into air dominance if the Ukrainians do not receive necessary military aid. We believe that Stinger missiles will continue to be critical in combating Russia's superiority in the air. With Russia's alarming disregard for Ukrainian civilian casualties, the U.S. must also help supply more comprehensive air defense systems to defend Ukraine and its people. Specifically, the U.S. must work with our NATO allies who possess the S-300 surface-to-air missile system to facilitate and expedite the transfer of these systems to Ukraine. Providing Soviet-era platforms that Ukrainian servicemembers have previously operated and maintained will be essential to their success on the battlefield and will also protect U.S. defense technology from falling into the hands of the Russians.
2. Facilitate the transfer of manned and unmanned aircraft: We also understand that conversations are ongoing between the U.S., Poland, and other Eastern European allies regarding the transfer of aircraft to Ukraine. We commend the Polish government for taking proactive steps to deliver MiG-29 jets to the Ukrainian Air Force. We urge you to help facilitate this deal, commit to replenishing our allies' fleets with American-made aircraft, and help advance the transfer of Su-25 aircraft to Ukraine as well. Similar to an S-300 transfer, this is a pragmatic solution to expeditiously provide the Ukrainians with aircraft which Ukrainian pilots have flown and their servicemembers can maintain. We also believe that the U.S. should seriously consider strategies to provide further drone capability to the Ukrainians, as they have already used Bayraktar TB2 drones with success on the battlefield. Unmanned platforms--to include both intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and strike capabilities--could prove critical to Ukrainian efforts to combat Russia's advances.
3. Strengthen Economic Sanctions: Sanctions against third parties that do business with Russian entities and individuals are necessary to deter those who would otherwise be willing to support Moscow's economic interests. If necessary, secondary sanctions should be levied against Chinese banks and businesses that do business with Russia, in order to best ensure that Russia is unable to find a means of offsetting its exclusion from U.S. and European markets and banking systems.
4. Bolster Humanitarian Aid: Russia's invasion has resulted in more than 2 million refugees, 1 million of whom are children, fleeing their homes in search of safety, and the indiscriminate nature of its assaults risks the deaths of thousands of Ukrainian civilians. Aid to Ukraine, including the provision of food, clothing, medical supplies, and shelters is urgently required to address the harm Russia has inflicted upon millions of people through its unprovoked aggression. With Congress set to appropriate emergency aid funding to Ukraine as soon as this week, it is essential that our allies and partners are similarly committed to robust aid packages. We urge you to communicate the necessity of multilateral humanitarian assistance to our allies and partners around the world. A coordinated effort is essential to helping vulnerable Ukrainian civilians.
The U.S. must act decisively to support Ukraine. We must urge our allies and partners to do the same. Thank you for your attention to these critical issues.