U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree on Thursday called it a “badge of honor” after Russia sanctioned her.
The Russian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday announced it was targeting 400 members of the U.S. House of Representatives in retaliation for Biden administration sanctions on more than 300 deputies in the Duma.
Pingree last month toured the Ukrainian border in Moldova, Romania, Poland and Austria, meeting with refugees fleeing in the wake of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion, now stretching into its eighth week.
That followed her vote in favor of a $13.6 billion aid package to Ukraine that she called just a “down payment.” Just this week, President Joe Biden approved another $800 million in military aid — including artillery and helicopters — to the eastern European nation
“I take it as a badge of honor to be sanctioned by Putin’s murderous regime. I saw with my own eyes the brutal consequences of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and I will not back down from supporting the Ukrainian people,” Pingree said Thursday.
Putin has shown no signs of withdrawing from Ukraine despite his invasion being beset with setbacks since its earliest days. Russian forces have pulled out from around Kyiv as part of a broader redeployment to separtist areas in Ukraine’s east. On Tuesday, Putin vowed to continue the war until his goals are met.