A handful of GOP lawmakers called on two members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet to maintain the United States’ “powerful posture” in Eastern Europe, arguing that a robust American presence is critical to curbing aggression from Russia and other adversaries. Underscoring the need for “a consistent forward projection of U.S. deterrence,” the lawmakers wrote a letter Tuesday to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging them to make the nation’s bases in Eastern Europe permanent — a step that signatories argued will “increase regional security and bolster our allies and partners.” “Neither Russia nor China will stop until they have replaced the United States as the number one global hegemon, and a strong forward posture in Eastern Europe will allow us to deter our adversaries early and decisively,” the lawmakers wrote. Led by Rep. Pat Fallon, the new chairman of the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee, the letter comes as the Trump administration is laying the groundwork to help broker an end to the nearly three-year-long Russia-Ukraine war. U.S. officials have urged NATO allies to bolster their defense spending and pushed member states to guarantee their own security. And over the past week, the administration has signaled it may be receptive to Moscow’s war-related demands and open to normalizing relations between the two nations. The topics emerged during a Tuesday meeting between Rubio and his Russian counterpart in Saudi Arabia, where officials began peace talks and discussed ways “to address irritants to our bilateral relationship.” A State Department readout of Rubio’s meeting shows the diplomats agreed to appoint individuals tasked with starting work toward “ending the conflict in Ukraine as soon as possible in a way that is enduring, sustainable, and acceptable to all sides.” Officials from Ukraine were not present during the meeting, which occurred nearly a week after Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “One phone call followed by one meeting is not sufficient to establish enduring peace,” department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said. “We must take action, and today we took an important step forward.” In the letter, lawmakers blamed the Obama and Biden administrations for employing a “soft-on-Russia approach” that “has allowed the Kremlin to capitalize on power vacuums in Eastern Europe and elsewhere, with Crimea being a prime example.” The line references Russia’s 2014 invasion and subsequent annexation of Crimea, which occurred under President Barack Obama’s second term. “With the rise of global tensions in recent years and the ongoing war in Ukraine, it’s essential that the U.S. can properly and effectively project power within Eastern Europe,” the lawmakers added. Also signing on to the letter were GOP Reps. Michael R. Turner of Ohio, the recently ousted chair of the House Intelligence Committee; Daniel Crenshaw of Texas; Jen Kiggans of Virginia; and Claudia Tenney of New York.
