In a television interview with British journalist Piers Morgan on Wednesday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” and explained that his recent assertion that the Russian invasion of Ukraine was a ” territorial dispute” had been misinterpreted.
Ron DeSantis, who is expected to run for the Republican presidential nomination shortly, made a statement last week that caught everyone’s attention. “The United States has many vital national interests, but becoming more involved in the Ukraine-Russia territorial dispute is not one of those interests,” DeSantis said. The phrase “territorial dispute” has drawn strong criticism from prominent Republicans.
This statement has been “misinterpreted,” says Ron DeSantis in an interview with Piers Morgan: “Obviously Russia invaded Ukraine… They invaded and took over Crimea. It was wrong. But in my opinion, Russia is not demonstrating its ability to take control of Ukraine, overthrow the government and threaten NATO. I don’t think there are good reasons to broaden our participation. However, the idea that I believe Russia’s actions can be justified in any way is nonsense. DeSantis expressed his belief that Putin will not emerge victorious from this war.
The governor of Florida also responded to the issuance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court against Russian President Vladimir Putin. “In my opinion, he is a war criminal. He needs to be held accountable,” Ron DeSantis said.
Particular attention has been paid to the statements of Ron DeSantis, since, according to the polls, he enjoys significant popularity with the Republican electorate, including among those who voted for Donald Trump. DeSantis is now seen as Trump’s most serious potential challenger for the Republican presidential nomination. A sizable portion of Republicans recently told pollsters that the level of US military support for Ukraine is too high.
