"Ukrainians will not be abandoned": A Republican congressman discusses the U.S. plan, Trump's realism, and the Lend-Lease program.

Republican Congressman from South Dakota, Joe Wilson, is a friend of Ukraine and believes that President Donald Trump can end the war.

To support "peace through strength," Wilson this month introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to empower Trump with lend-lease authority for Ukraine.

To learn more about this and other topics, "Telegraph" spoke with the congressman at the Munich Ukrainian Lunch organized by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.

— Congressman, I wanted to ask about your lend-lease bill. Can you elaborate on what it entails?

— We know that a real way to engage the American public is to make them aware that not everything is given for free; that under the lend-lease program, there may be a possibility of reimbursement. We were successful during World War II.

Ironically, at the largest open cemetery in the world in St. Petersburg, I saw that it was precisely because of lend-lease that the USSR was able to block Hitler and prevent the capture of Leningrad.

This was American lend-lease coming through Murmansk. And we see that lend-lease can be a very effective and viable program. It provides immediate assistance.

Therefore, I believe that lend-lease is very, very positive. The irony is that back then we wanted to see the USSR succeed in defeating the Nazis. Now we want to see Ukraine succeed in overcoming the war criminal Putin.

— Do you believe that President Trump will achieve lasting peace in Ukraine this year? After all, as General Kellogg said, your leader likes to act quickly.

— President Trump's intention is indeed to save the lives of Ukrainians. And we know that he tried to prevent all this by providing Ukraine with missiles even before he left office. He deployed American troops in Poland. People need to know this. And it was Donald Trump who halted "Nord Stream 2." So he is a realist.

People should pay attention not only to his words but also to his policies. Look at what he accomplished. During his four years [of his first term], there was not a single war in the world, because everyone knew that America had resolve.

And so any agreement that will be reached... I think General Kellogg explained very clearly: it will indeed be in favor of the Ukrainian people, and it will not be a betrayal. Because betrayal would simply continue what is currently a war against Ukraine, a war against Georgia, a war against Moldova. And we know that Putin's evil intent is to recreate the collapsed Soviet Union.

— What are your impressions of the current Munich Conference? Is it bringing us closer to peace?

— I am inspired because, you know, after three years people usually become exhausted. But I do not see that. I see determination. And I am very grateful that there were 17 U.S. senators and 15 members of the U.S. House of Representatives here. All the congressmen present—both Democrats and Republicans—strongly support the people of Ukraine. We also had a great meeting with President Zelensky.

He is an inspiration for all of us, for those who strive for freedom and democracy, who want free and fair elections. We also have a meeting scheduled with Salome Zourabichvili, the legitimate president of Georgia. Additionally, we will meet with the Chancellor of Germany. The German people are showing great determination.

— So, the U.S. will stand with Ukraine for as long as necessary? Should Ukrainians not fear being left to fend for themselves?

— Ukrainians will not be abandoned. That is absolutely clear.

And I want to give credit to the Prime Minister of Denmark [Mette Frederiksen], who said: "This is not a Ukrainian war; this is a Russian war." And she is right.

This is a Russian war. Initially, it was directed against Belarus. And it could have been avoided. It is about interference in elections.

The war in Crimea and Donbas. Let’s not forget South Ossetia and Abkhazia in Georgia. Military control in Transnistria. We know, and President Trump knows, that Putin's war needs to be stopped now. Otherwise, it will spread further, and even more lives will be lost.

Donald Trump is a realist. He is a Reaganist. And that means peace through strength.

We want to see a strong Europe. There was a complete misunderstanding when people thought he was against NATO. He was not against NATO.

He advocated for NATO countries to increase their defense spending to 2%, as they committed to. But now that figure needs to be even higher to achieve peace through strength. Because we are dealing not only with the war criminal Putin.

We are in a situation where we are also confronting the mullahs in Tehran, who invaded Israel on October 7, 2023. And I believe we have a great opportunity after the dictator in Syria is overthrown.

And this became possible thanks to the people of Ukraine. They inspired the people of Syria to resist. Putin could not save his dictator Assad. And now Syria will become a free country.

I look forward to the consequences this will have. It will impact dictatorship in Africa. It will have a very positive effect on the people of Iran, who do not want to live under dictatorship.

Therefore, Ukraine and Ukrainians deserve immense respect for their struggle. And we know one more thing. It was indeed the Ukrainians who inspired Sweden and Finland to join NATO.

Who could have imagined that? Time and again, Ukrainians can take pride in what they have already achieved and what they will achieve for the sake of Western civilization.