President Trump’s decisions to remove almost all economic sanctions against Russia and possibly deny Ukraine access to Starlink/Starshield intelligence data clearly favor Russia over Ukraine, jeopardize the safety of our armed forces in the Middle East, and increase the possibility of a broader war in Europe. Congress should demand that Trump reverse his decisions, implement the Graham Act, restore and ensure Ukrainian access to relevant intelligence data, and thereby support both Ukrainian victory and European peace.
President Trump’s decision to allow Russia to sell its diesel fuel and thereby earn billions of much-needed dollars was disgraceful enough. But even more outrageous is his decision to suspend most of the economic sanctions imposed by the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The Graham Act, so-named for its chief advocate, would impose tariffs of up to 500% on Russian imports in addition to those already in place; tariffs of up to 100% on imports from Russia’s top purchasers of Russian crude oil and/or natural gas in addition to those already in place; visa restrictions on Russian President Putin as well as on top Russian military leaders, defense contractors, and financiers; and measures to p prohibit American bankers from investing in Russian businesses or cooperating with Russian officials. But by lifting these sanctions, Trump is expanding Russian commerce, which will generate more wealth for Russia to be used in its war against Ukraine.
President Trump has also been accused of restricting Ukraine’s access to intelligence data generated by Elon Musk’s Starlink/Starshield system. Trump has denied doing so, and White House officials have said that bad weather has limited Ukraine’s access to data which would otherwise warn its armed forces of incoming Russian missile and drone attacks. Nonetheless, press reports have said that orders to limit Ukraine’s access to intelligence data have come from “within the White House.”
Furthermore, as CBS News, CNN, and the Washington Post have reported, Russia has in the recent past supplied intelligence data to Iran to use for targeting our armed forces in the Middle East. The extent to which it has done so and whether it continues to do so are not clear. But what is clear is that President Trump is seeking to aid and enrich a nation which has been aiding Iran in is war against America, and which may still be doing so, especially in the absence of any effort to punish Russia for siding with Iran and against the United States in time of war.
And even if Russia has stopped aiding Iran for the time being, its conduct nonetheless endangers America’s long-range national security interests and increases the chances that we may be drawn into a European war within the foreseeable future. Ukraine is not a NATO member. But as I’ve noted before, Putin, in his zeal to reconstitute the old Soviet empire under Russian leadership, may soon threaten America’s NATO allies in Eastern Europe, which were once either parts of the Soviet Union (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia) or Soviet satellites (Poland, Hungary, etc.). Russian aggression in Eastern Europe may well trigger Article 5 of the NATO Treaty and obligate us to go to war as well in defense of our fellow NATO members. And those who argue that Putin is simply trying to reunite all Russian-speaking peoples and will stop his expansionistic war when he does so should remember that Hitler used to say that all he wanted to do was bring all German speakers in Austria and the Czech Sudetenland under one jurisdiction as well, and would likewise cease making any more territorial demands. And look at how that turned out.
President Trump continues to say he really wants peace between Ukraine and Russia. But if he truly means it, he must help Ukraine defeat Russia, not the other way around. And Congress should pass new legislation to rescind Trump’s power to suspend the Graham Act, to force Trump to reimpose relevant sanctions against Russia and those who help enrich Russia with their commerce, and to guarantee better Ukrainian access to relevant American intelligence. A decisive Ukrainian victory which discourages further Russian aggression is more likely to bring peace, but a Russian victory is more likely to bring more war.
Malcolm L. Cross has lived in Stephenville since 1987 and taught politics and government at Tarleton for 36 years, retiring in 2023. His political and civic activities include service on the Stephenville City Council (2000-2014) and on the Erath County Republican Executive Committee (1990-2024). He was Mayor pro-tem of Stephenville from 2008 to 2014. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Stephenville Economic Development Authority since 2018, and as chair of the Erath County Appraisal District’s Appraisal Review Board since 2015. He is also a member of the Stephenville Rotary Club, the Board of Vestry of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, and the Executive Committee of the Boy Scouts’ Pecan Valley District. Views expressed in this column are his and do not reflect those of The Flash as a whole.
Be the first to comment