Fresh off a brilliant performance in Wednesday night’s fourth Republican debate, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy received a grilling early Thursday morning from “Fox & Friends” co-host Brian Kilmeade about his policy toward Ukraine.
Kilmeade cut to the chase, asking the White House candidate if he was comfortable giving “Russia whatever it wants from Ukraine” and if Ramaswamy was confident he could keep Russia and China separate in return.
“I think we have to play hardball there and reach a difficult agreement that requires any breach of that agreement to have significant consequences,” Ramaswamy responded.
Ramaswamy has long based his approach to the Ukraine war on the goal of breaking relations between China and Russia, which he sees as the main threat to national security.
When asked what other sanctions the United States could impose given the sanctions on Russia already in place, Ramaswamy explained that he would support a “maximum pressure campaign.”
“It’s going to be done anyway. “You can’t keep Russia away from China,” Kilmeade countered.
Vivek Ramaswamy became irritated with Nikki Haley during Wednesday’s debate, calling her corrupt and comparing her to a fascist. REUTERS
Ramaswamy protested that there are “problems in that relationship.”
Kilmeade then asked if he was comfortable with Russia taking over more of Eastern Europe.
“We have no idea how Ukraine has spent $200 billion of our money. We are shelling out more taxpayer money,” Ramaswamy responded. “That’s corrupt.”
Since Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Congress has authorized about $113 billion in aid, but not all of that amount has been delivered. President Biden seeks more money for the war-torn nation as the war nears the end of its second year.
Ramaswamy also questioned the characterization of Ukraine as a democracy.
Brian Kilmeade pressed Vive Ramaswamy on the implications of his Ukraine policy. Fox News
“You sound so naive!” Kilmeade responded. “You just give up on Ukraine and then in a few years you will criticize Joe Biden for giving up on Ukraine.”
“Brian, I think if I called Nikki Haley naïve, you guys would be having a seizure, let’s be honest about it,” Ramaswamy responded. “Actually, I understand what the hell I’m talking about here.”
Echoing his criticism of support for Ukraine on the debate stage, Ramaswamy called for “this neoconservative wisdom to be relegated to the dustbin of history, where it belongs.”
The biotechnology entrepreneur has been a fierce critic of American interventionism. AFP via Getty Images
“Well, forget about ‘neocon wisdom.’ Nobody believes in that,” Kilmeade chided before sarcastically adding, “Just leave Eastern Europe.”
“I think it’s a crazy foreign policy and I think the right answer is that we need to protect Americans,” Ramaswamy concluded.
Just before the interview with Ramaswamy, co-host Steve Doocy described the 38-year-old’s debate performance as “embarrassing.”
“It just came back in too hot. They booed him several times,” said Doocy, who awarded Ramaswamy fourth place in his personal debate rankings “just because he was there.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn