Hoyer: Today We took a Step to Redeem Our Pledge to Ukraine
WASHINGTON, DC –Today, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) delivered remarks during a press conference following House passage of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. Below are a video and transcript of his remarks:
Click here to watch a video of his remarks.
"Senator Shaheen and Senator Blumenthal, who have been such giants, [have been] working on this for a long, long period of time. I've got a speech here; I'm not going to give it as it's written. This is a good day. It's a good day for freedom. It's a good day for democracy. It's a good day for a country that has [been] beleaguered by a savage nation who, contrary to their agreement – and they got nuclear material, all of it in return for the promise to honor the sovereignty of Ukraine, to honor the geography of Ukraine, and to honor the democracy of Ukraine – they lied. And today we took a step to redeem our pledge to Ukraine, to support their sovereignty and their democracy and their geography. The mother of this war was the tepid response in 2014 to the stealing of Crimea. Today was a statement by the Congress of the United States in a bipartisan way, that that should not stand. And that the voice of America spoken through the Congress of the United States is to tell Russia and Putin, ‘No more. No more standing by and rationalizing your behavior. No more allowing Ukrainians to be killed every night. No more the theft of eastern Ukraine and of Crimea. No more to savage invasion of sovereign countries, inconsistent with every international treaty that we know of.’
"I spent eight hours today on the phone with my Members on my side of the aisle. There was concern by some of our leadership, for whom I have great affection and great respect, and who we co-sponsored a bill, the Ukraine Support Act – which is stronger than the bill we just passed, better than the bill we just passed, more comprehensive than the bill we just passed. But this bill was critically important, and I want to thank all the people here. And Senator [Graham], I want to thank you. Lindsey and I did a number of travels together. He was one of the funniest guys I know. And he – I didn't always agree with him, and I was frustrated that it took us from April [2024] to this day to pass a major piece of legislation. Twenty-four – two years ago [was] the last time we acted. This was way past time to say to Russia, ‘We're not for you. We're against the action you've taken. And to say to Ukraine, ‘We're your friends. We are for you. And we will stand with you.’
"I personally think it's none of Russia's business whether Ukraine joins NATO. I am for that. I am for that because that's what they want. And frankly, Sweden did not ask, nor did we ask Russia's permission for Sweden. We didn't ask for permission for Finland to join NATO. And we should not ask for permission for Ukraine to join NATO. But this day is about saying, 'We want sanctions on Russia.' I believe the President is going to sign a bill which says we want sanctions on Russia, and then we will be able to say and the world will be able to say the Congress of the United States has set a policy that we will sanction, actively and effectively, Russian criminal behavior.
"So, I want to say how proud I am to be associated – I want to say something about Marcy Kaptur. Marcy Kaptur is Ukrainian. Marcy Kaptur is the strongest voice in the Congress of the United States on behalf of Ukraine for [the] decades that she and I have served together. Marcy Kaptur has been my leader on this issue. Now, I was the Leader for a long time, but on this issue we cooperated. And I talked to Senator Blumenthal and Senator Shaheen on a regular basis of ‘How are we going to get this done?’ And I want to thank my partners. Mike McCaul. We would not have gotten the Ukraine Support Act out of the Congress without Mike McCaul. He stood up to his party. he stood for principle, and he stood for Ukraine. And Joe Wilson was there with him. Joe, thank you very much. Ukraine's battle is not over, and we must be faithful to the action that we took in the Congress. Mr. Meeks and I and Ms. DeLauro are going to introduce a bill – hopefully within the next week – which will authorize additional funding for weapons and materials to confront the onslaught against Ukraine. So, we know that this battle is not over until Ukrainians are all free, and Crimea is an integral part of that country. Thank you."