Ted Cruz: Russia invaded Ukraine because of ‘catastrophic’ mistakes made by Biden administration
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on the United States' involvement as Russia invades Ukraine.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Thursday Russia invaded Ukraine because of "catastrophic" mistakes made by the Biden administration.
"We need strength and we need resolve. The reason Russia has invaded Ukraine is because of catastrophic mistakes made by President Biden and Vice President Harris," Cruz told "America Reports."
As Russian forces move into Ukraine, Cruz said there are two reasons the U.S. is in its situation with Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
TOPSHOT - A man reacts at the body of a relative outside a destroyed building after bombings on the eastern Ukraine town of Chuguiv on February 24, 2022. (Photo by Aris Messinis / AFP) (Photo by ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images) (Photo by ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)
The first, he notes, is the Biden administration’s "incompetently executed" and "catastrophic" withdrawal of U.S. troops out of Afghanistan last year.
"Every enemy of America across the globe looked at America and was emboldened. They looked at the Oval Office and took a measure of the man in the Oval Office, and unfortunately, they concluded that the president was weak and feckless and ineffective," Cruz said.
Cruz went on to say that after the world witnessed the U.S.’s botched withdrawal, the chances of a Russian invasion of Ukraine increased tenfold. He added the chances of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan had increased tenfold as well.
Cruz said the second mistake made by the Biden administration was waiving sanctions on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
"President Biden made an enormous mistake when he waved the sanctions on Nord Stream 2, the pipeline that Putin was building to get his natural gas to Europe without having to go through Ukraine," he said.
Cruz authored bipartisan legislation signed into law by former President Trump to stop the development of the pipeline before Biden reversed the effort.
In this image made from video released by the Russian Presidential Press Service, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressees the nation in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022. (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP) (Russian Presidential Press Service via AP)
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White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday the Biden administration had "never supported" the Nord Stream 2 pipeline despite previously waiving sanctions and lobbying Congress against sanctioning it.
"Thankfully yesterday, after over a year of my battling him the Senate to try to get the sanctions imposed, Joe Biden finally did the right thing and imposed sanctions on Nord Stream 2, "Cruz said. "It’s the right decision but far too late because he does not believe it’s credible, does not believe that it will stay."
Fox News' Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
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