Kinzinger Pushes 'Red Line' Resolution for US Force if Russia Deploys WMDs
Representative Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican, announced Sunday that he has introduced a resolution to use military force against Russia if the U.S. adversary chooses to use weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in its internationally condemned war against Ukraine.
Concerns have mounted from Ukrainian, American and Western European officials that Russian President Vladimir Putin could deploy chemical, biological or even nuclear weapons against Ukraine as his military continues to face setbacks and losses. While Putin reportedly believed that he would easily and quickly take control of much of Ukraine when he launched the full-scale invasion on February 24, the war has now entered its third month with Kyiv's government remaining firmly in place.
Accusations and rumors have swirled throughout the conflict that Russia may turn to WMDs if it grows desperate in the conflict. Moscow has been widely condemned in recent years over credible accusations that it deployed such weapons against rebel groups and civilians in Syria as it militarily propped up the embattled government in Damascus.
Kinzinger, who has pushed the administration of President Joe Biden for weeks to establish firm red lines in the Eastern European conflict, announced his new congressional resolution—Authorization for Use of Military Force to Defend America's Allies Resolution of 2022—during an interview with CBS News' Face the Nation. He shortly later released a statement outlining his call for the "red line" in the ongoing war.