几位共和党高级参议员正在反击佛罗里达州州长罗恩·德桑蒂斯的立场，即“进一步卷入两国之间的领土争端”乌克兰俄罗斯“并不是美国至关重要的国家利益。
德桑蒂斯将这场战争称为“领土争端”的声明引发了他自己政党成员的反弹，包括得克萨斯州共和党参议员约翰·科宁、北卡罗来纳州共和党参议员托姆·蒂利斯、特朗普的早期支持者政府立法机关林赛·格雷厄姆、R-S.C .和Sen马尔科·卢比奥，佛罗里达州。
来自德克萨斯州的资深参议员Cornyn告诉美国广播公司新闻，他不明白为什么德桑蒂斯-一个退伍军人-会反对在俄罗斯入侵时加强对乌克兰的支持。
“我有点惊讶。我是说，德桑蒂斯州长是个老兵。他是个聪明人。我认为他是一个非常好的州长。我只是不明白他为什么说乌克兰对美国不重要，”科尔宁说，他称这个问题“绝对重要”。
“这提出了问题，”当被问及德桑蒂斯的言论是否让他担心共和党州长对这个问题的理解时，科尔宁说。
2023年3月7日，佛罗里达州州长罗恩·德桑蒂斯在佛罗里达州塔拉哈西的国会大厦举行的参众两院联席会议上发表国情咨文后，回答了佛罗里达州内阁媒体的问题。
菲尔·西尔斯/美联社，文件
当被问及关于美国对乌克兰援助的规模和范围的问题是否会成为共和党在2024年竞选审判中的主要叙事时，蒂利斯说，他认为“人们需要打开光圈。”
“看看你真的想让俄罗斯拥有欧洲的粮仓，那就是乌克兰，从而影响粮食供应吗?由于冲突，人们正在忘记我们必须做些什么才能把食物送到北非。你真的希望那在俄罗斯的控制之下吗?”他说。
在参议院外交关系委员会(Senate Foreign Relations Committee)任职的卢比奥(Rubio)是参议院情报委员会(Senate Intelligence Committee)副主席，他表示，乌克兰战争“不是领土争端，因为如果美国决定入侵加拿大或接管巴哈马，它就不会是领土争端。”
“我不知道他想做什么，也不知道他的目标是什么，”卢比奥在与保守派电台主持人休·休伊特关于德桑蒂斯的评论。"显然，作为州长，他并不是每天都要处理外交政策。"
来自德桑蒂斯所在州的资深参议员卢比奥也指出了这场冲突作为美国国家安全问题的重要性。
“这不是美国的头号国家安全利益，但却是一项重要的利益。我们可以做也应该做一些事情，通过帮助他们来增进这种兴趣。这不是无限的兴趣，”他补充道。
格雷厄姆没有提到德桑蒂斯的名字，但似乎批评他在国际冲突方面“错过了很多”。
“对于那些认为俄罗斯对乌克兰的无端野蛮入侵不是美国优先考虑的事情的人，你们错过了很多。”格雷厄姆在一篇推特周二发的帖子。
但德桑蒂斯的立场，特别是他的论点“我们的公民也有权知道美国纳税人的数十亿美元是如何在乌克兰使用的，”已经几个支持者在他的党内。共和党参议员乔希·霍利(Josh Hawley)和众议员马乔里·泰勒·格林(Marjorie Taylor Greene)、安迪·比格斯(Andy Biggs)和保罗·戈萨尔(Paul Gosar)对美国支持乌克兰表示怀疑，他们投票反对在冲突中援助乌克兰人的支出计划。
共和党众议员奇普·罗伊是极端保守的众议院自由核心小组的成员被责难的数十亿美元援助乌克兰是“站不住脚的”，周三采取了支持德桑蒂斯竞选总统的步骤，对州长在支持声明中对乌克兰的立场表示赞同。
“也许最重要的是，德桑蒂斯州长明确表示，他将以总司令的身份领导我们的国家，以那种通过力量产生和平的决心和冷静的力量。作为一名退伍军人，他认识到，当一支军队强大、非政治正确且具有杀伤力时——同时被谨慎但果断地使用，并且不会陷入全球范围内无休止、旷日持久的军事行动中——才是最好的，”罗伊书写在一份声明中。
这位共和党州长被广泛视为2024年共和党总统候选人提名的头号竞争者，丁格德拜登政府“在没有任何明确目标或责任的情况下，为这场冲突提供虚拟的‘空白支票’资金。”
德桑蒂斯在他的声明中说，“美国不应该提供可能需要部署美国军队或让乌克兰在境外参与进攻行动的援助。”对福克斯新闻频道民意调查主持人塔克·卡尔森的调查问卷的回答，卡尔森在周一分享了。
“因此，F-16战斗机和远程导弹应该被排除在外。这些举动可能会明显将美国拖入冲突，并使我们更接近世界上两个最大的核大国之间的热战。这种风险是不可接受的，”他继续说道。
前总统唐纳德·特朗普在回答卡尔森的问卷时采取了类似的立场。
"在乌克兰反对俄罗斯是美国至关重要的国家战略利益吗?"特朗普问道。
两位可能的共和党领跑者在乌克兰问题上的立场与其他共和党候选人和潜在的2024年候选人截然不同，包括前副总统迈克·彭斯和前美国驻联合国大使妮基·黑利宣布她参选。两人都公开表示，支持乌克兰对美国至关重要。
Top Republican senators slam DeSantis for calling Ukraine war a 'territorial dispute'
Several top GOP senators are pushing back on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' position that "becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute betweenUkraineand Russia" is not a vital U.S. national interest.
DeSantis' statement terming the war a "territorial dispute" sparked backlash from members of his own party, including Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.,early Trump backerSen.Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Sen.Marco Rubio, R-Fla.
Cornyn, the senior senator from Texas, told ABC News that he doesn't understand why DeSantis -- a veteran himself -- would be against shoring up support for Ukraine amid Russia's invasion.
"I was kind of surprised. I mean, Governor DeSantis is a veteran. He's a smart guy. I think he's been a very good governor. And I just I don't understand him saying that Ukraine isn't important to the United States," Cornyn, who called the issue "absolutely important," said.
"It raises questions," Cornyn said when asked whether DeSantis' remarks gave him concern about the Republican governor's understanding of the issue.
When asked whether questions about the size and scope of American aid to Ukraine could become a leading GOP narrative on the 2024 campaign trial, Tillis said he thinks "people need to open the aperture."
"Take a look at do you really want Russia to to own the breadbasket of Europe, and that's Ukraine, affecting food supplies? People are forgetting what we've had to do to get food into North Africa because of the conflict. Do you really want that under Russian control?" he said.
Rubio, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the war in Ukraine is "not a territorial dispute in the sense that any more than it would be a territorial dispute if the United States decided that it wanted to invade Canada or take over the Bahamas."
"I don't know what he's trying to do or what the goal is," Rubio continued in a conversation withconservative radio host Hugh Hewittregarding DeSantis' comments. "Obviously, he doesn't deal with foreign policy every day as governor."
Rubio, the senior senator from DeSantis' state, also noted the importance of the conflict as a U.S. national security concern.
"It's not the number one national security interest the United States has, but it's an important one. And there are things we can do and should do to further that interest by helping them. It's not an unlimited interest," he added.
Graham, without mentioning DeSantis by name, seemed to criticize him as "missing a lot" regarding the international conflict.
"To those who believe that Russia's unprovoked and barbaric invasion of Ukraine is not a priority for the United States – you are missing a lot." Graham wrote in aTwitterthread posted on Tuesday.
But DeSantis' stance, especially his contention that "our citizens are also entitled to know how the billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars are being utilized in Ukraine," hasseveral supporterswithin his party. Republican Sen. Josh Hawley and Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar have expressed skepticism of U.S. support for Ukraine, and they have been on the record voting against spending packages to aid Ukrainians in the conflict.
GOP Rep. Chip Roy, a member of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus who last Maycondemnedbillions of dollars in aid to Ukraine as "indefensible," took the step of endorsing DeSantis for president on Wednesday, nodding to the governor's stance on Ukraine in his statement of support.
"Perhaps most of all Governor DeSantis makes clear he would lead our nation as commander in chief with the kind of resolve and sober strength that produces peace through strength. A veteran himself, he recognizes that a military is best when it is strong, non-politcally correct and lethal– while being sparingly but decisively used and not mired in endless, protracted military engagements all around the globe," Roywrotein a statement.
The Republican governor, widely viewed as a top contender for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination,dingedthe Biden administration for "virtual 'blank check' funding of this conflict for 'as long as it takes,' without any defined objectives or accountability."
"The U.S. should not provide assistance that could require the deployment of American troops or enable Ukraine to engage in offensive operations beyond its borders," DeSantis said in hisresponse to a questionnaire from Fox News opinion host Tucker Carlson,which Carlson shared Monday.
"F-16s and long-range missiles should therefore be off the table. These moves would risk explicitly drawing the United States into the conflict and drawing us closer to a hot war between the world's two largest nuclear powers. That risk is unacceptable," he continued.
Former President Donald Trump adopted a similar stance in his response to Carlson's questionnaire.
"Is opposing Russia in Ukraine a vital American national strategic interest?" Trump asked.
The two probable GOP frontrunners' stance on Ukraine is directly at odds with other Republican candidates and potential 2024 hopefuls, including former Vice President Mike Pence and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who hasdeclared her candidacy. Both have publicly said that supporting Ukraine is of vital interest to the U.S.
