Putin shows he is not interested in peace

• Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) writes that whatever peace deal the United States and Ukraine agree to, it must not let the Russian president off of the mat.

For several weeks, representatives of President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have been working toward peace in war-torn Ukraine. Both leaders want to end the war, and so do the people of their nations. Meanwhile, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin continues to show no interest in real peace.

At the end of March, Russia sent drones and ballistic missiles into a residential neighborhood in Kryvyi Rih, a Ukrainian city. It is no accident that Kryvyi Rih is President Zelensky’s hometown. Putin’s cluster munitions exploded among ordinary, noncombatant citizens, sending shrapnel into restaurants, homes, and even a children’s playground.

Putin Kills and Kidnaps Children

The bombs killed 20 people and injured nearly 70 more. One of those tragically lost was a 3-year-old boy named Tymofii, who was struck as he and his grandmother were walking home from the playground. One moment Tymofii was playing, and the next moment he was gone. He was one of nine children killed in the assault. The strike was Russia’s most deadly attack on young people since the invasion began, and, disturbingly, it was simply the latest of Putin’s many crimes against children.

Since he launched the unprovoked war, the Russian tyrant has overseen the kidnapping of nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children. His officials targeted the most vulnerable first, choosing orphans and those living with disabilities or in poverty. He has forcibly taken many of them to “re-education” camps. At these horrible sites, the children are abused, cut off from family, and undernourished. Many are not allowed to speak their native language and are fed by Russian propaganda. Putin’s goal is obvious, though nearly unthinkable. He wants to brainwash Ukraine’s future citizenry. He is pursuing a genocidal scheme, and he hopes to wipe the country off the map.

Putin Persecutes Evangelical Christians

Vladimir Putin indoctrinates children because all dictators are afraid of free-thinking people. For the same reason, Russia has wiped out religious freedom in occupied areas of Ukraine.

During its invasion of Ukraine, Moscow’s army has led a campaign of terror against evangelical Christians. Putin spreads the lie that Protestants are mere American agents, and he uses that falsehood to spread violence. His soldiers have killed dozens of pastors and persecuted even more. They have converted houses of worship into weapons storage units and have driven believers underground. The Southern Baptist Convention’s Baptist Press has covered this atrocity. It reports that Russia has wiped out 400 Baptist congregations, turning thriving Christian communities into ghost towns.

Putin Must Not Be Let Off the Mat

Putin’s actions are not only an outrage but also war crimes – and they demand a response. The United States must not tolerate Vladimir Putin’s war crimes, and I believe President Trump agrees. In March, the president signaled that he was displeased that the Russian dictator refused to make a peace deal. The U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, recently said President Trump will not allow Putin to drag us along in endless negotiations. Mr. Rubio said, “We will know soon enough, in a matter of weeks, not months, whether Russia is serious about peace or not.”

It did not take weeks or months. The autocrat launched his most recent attack on women and children the day after Mr. Rubio’s words – and in the middle of cease-fire negotiations. That is not the action of a leader who is interested in peace. Instead, Putin wants a phony deal that allows him to rebuild for another assault.

Putin needs to rearm, because Russia’s economy and industry show signs of cracking. He can maintain his war today, but he cannot sustain a wartime economy forever. Whatever peace deal the United States and Ukraine agree to, it must not let Putin off of the mat. He must not be allowed to regroup. I stand with President Trump and President Zelensky as they face down this murderous tyrant and continue pursuing peace.