Graham was also targeted based on his proposed tightening of sanctions against Russia and for accusing President Vladimir Putin of orchestrating Navalny’s death in prison last week. “I call your ‘terrorists and extremists’ bid and raise you ‘State Sponsor of Terrorism under US law,’” Graham said in a statement posted to social media platform X. “Believe it or not, 2024 is going to be a bad year for Putin’s Russia. More aid to Ukraine. More high-end weapons that can reach out and touch the Russian occupiers. Designation of Russia as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. Expansion of Nato.” Russia’s Interior Ministry issued an arrest warrant for Graham last May after the country’s Investigative Committee chairman, Alexander Bastrykin, ordered criminal charges to be filed. “A video circulating online shows U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham saying during a meeting with the president of Ukraine that U.S. financial support is causing the deaths of Russian citizens,” the Interior Ministry said at the time, as reported by the Moscow Times. In the video, Graham told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that “Russians are dying” and that “It’s the best money we ever spent.” Authorities in Moscow responded as though the two statements were directly connected, the Times reported. “Navalny was one of the bravest people I ever met. When he went back to Russia, he had to know he was going to be killed by Putin, and he was murdered by Putin,” Graham said Sunday during an interview on CBS’ Face the Nation. “President Biden told Putin, if something happens to Navalny, you’re going to pay a price. President Biden, I agree with you, the price they should pay is to make Russia a state sponsor of terrorism,” he added. The death of Navalny, a prominent Putin critic who had been accused of attempting to overthrow the Russian government, sparked international outrage. His death came just a month before elections in Russia, where Putin is expected to retain control. The Biden administration now says it will be imposing “major sanctions” on Russia in response to Navalny’s death. White House national security communications adviser John Kirby said the fresh round of sanctions will be to "hold Russia accountable for what happened to Mr. Navalny" as well as "all its actions over the course of this vicious and brutal war" with Ukraine, which has now extended beyond two years.Russia’s state financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring has added Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to its list of “extremists and terrorists” following recent statements he made calling for the U.S. to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism after the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
