PHOENIX — Arizona Congressman Paul Gosar is inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to Phoenix to engage in peace negotiations to end the months-long war in Ukraine.
In a letter addressed earlier this week to Putin and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Republican congressman said he had seen enough "death and destruction" between their two countries and felt compelled to take action.
"A pathway to peace is long overdue and I write to offer a means to pursue this important goal," Gosar's letter states.
Gosar, who was censured last year by Congress for posting a threatening anime video against another elected official, goes on to invite the two presidents to Phoenix, a location Gosar considers ideal because it is "away from entities that are currently urging more war."
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February and Russia has been using disinformation to justify its aggressions against the country. Moscow has recently begun to describe the war as a "counterterrorism" operation in order to stoke anger against Ukraine, according to the New York Times.
The U.S. and other Western nations have been supporting Ukraine during the invasion but U.S. officials don't see the two warring countries reaching a resolution soon.
“Neither side is in a position to sit down and negotiate,” John F. Kirby, the strategic communications coordinator for the National Security Council, told the New York Times this week.
The White House has made it clear that President Zelensky must decide when Ukraine is ready to have peace talks with Russia.
"There is — it’s nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. We’ve been very clear about that," a White House spokesperson said this week. Our job, as we see it today, as we’ve seen it for the — this past year — more than a year — is to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs on the ground as we see this — this war happening in Ukraine.
Zelensky said last month that Ukraine will not hold peace talks with Russia while Putin remains president.
But some Republican leaders, including former President Donald Trump, have begun pushing for peace talks in Ukraine ahead of November's midterm elections. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy has warned that Congress won't be writing a "blank check" for Ukraine if Republicans win back majority of the House.
Gosar was one of 57 Republicans to vote against a spending bill in May that allocated billions toward helping Ukraine push back against Russia. Gosar again voted down extending the assistance to Ukraine in September.
An 80-page report released by the Pentagon this week noted how China and Russia were two of the biggest threats to the nation's security.
“Unlike China, Russia can't systemically challenge the United States over the long term," U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said this week. "But Russian aggression does pose an immediate and sharp threat to our interest and values."
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