Ukraine largely absent from Republican midterm convention stage, but party members weigh in offstage

DALLAS U.S., Texas — As the U.S. Republican Party convened for its first-ever national midterm convention in Dallas on Sept. 9-10, neither U.S. President Donald Trump nor Vice President JD Vance made Russia's war against Ukraine a significant part of their convention appearances.

The convention was designed primarily to rally Republicans ahead of the November elections. The official program featured more than 100 speakers and focused on domestic issues and the president's agenda.

But Russia's war against Ukraine still mattered to many of the Republican lawmakers, activists, and voters who spoke to the Kyiv Independent in Dallas. Their views ranged from calls to send more U.S. weapons to demands that the U.S. end its support for Ukraine fully.

Louisiana state Senator Michael "Big Mike" Fesi told the Kyiv Independent that foreign policy becomes harder to address during an election cycle.

"That is so difficult about these midterm elections, because we never give it enough time to solve problems," Fesi said. "Midterm elections put a hindrance on completing certain problems, like we have in the world, by having to worry about the elections."

Trump's peace push

Just days before Republicans gathered in Dallas, U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner traveled to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, then continued to Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on possible peace negotiations. It was their first visit to the Ukrainian capital. Trump spoke to Putin by phone on Sept. 8, the day before the convention.

"It's a complicated situation. I want there to be peace between the Ukrainian and the Russian people. I don't want to see people die. So we have to find a way to have peace," Greg Gandrud, a businessman from California, told the Kyiv Independent in Dallas.

On Sept. 5, Zelensky said that Russia deliberately targeted airports in Kyiv and Boryspil overnight ahead of the planned visit by the U.S. envoys.

A temporary agreement between Russia and Ukraine suggested that both countries would cease attacks on each other's capitals from midnight Sept. 5 to Sept. 8 during the visit by Witkoff and Kushner. The Kyiv City Military Administration issued a brief air raid alert on Sept. 7 as Russian drones flew toward the capital.

Far-right influencer Laura Loomer in an interview with the Kyiv Independent  said Russia had violated the pause and pointed to the Russian strike on the airport where the U.S. delegation was expected to arrive.

"It just shows you that the Russians cannot be trusted, and Vladimir Putin is a pathological liar, and a leader of a terrorist state," Loomer said.

Loomer, who visited Ukraine at the end of July, told the Kyiv Independent the trip was a "remarkable, life-changing experience" and said it changed how she viewed the war and the prospects for peace.

"I'm confident that the president will be able to help negotiate an end to the war," she added.

Patriots and the limits of U.S. support

Ukraine has repeatedly identified the U.S.-made Patriot systems as one of its most urgent military needs, as Russia continues to attack Ukrainian cities and infrastructure with massed drone and missile strikes.

Zelensky said the Sept. 6 talks with Witkoff and Kushner also covered Patriot systems and a broader "winter package" covering air defense and energy infrastructure.

Several Republicans interviewed in Dallas said they supported providing Ukraine with additional air defense capabilities. But they also said the U.S. does not have enough Patriot systems to satisfy every demand, including for its war with Iran.

Conrad Mazeika, president of the Baltic American Freedom League, was blunt when asked whether the U.S. should send more Patriots to Ukraine.

"Just send it over there," he said. "Just send the blueprint and you guys will make it out. Hey, bring it to the Baltic states. We'll build it and send it to Ukraine. Not a problem."

"Technology is transforming the West. Ukraine, you guys are transforming the West with drones and everything that's going on there. Very, very impressive," Mazeika added.

Loomer went further, saying that Ukraine's experience on the battlefield offered lessons for the U.S. and that Washington should consider developing a long-term strategic military partnership with Kyiv beyond the immediate question of weapons transfers.

Shaun, a U.S. combat veteran who asked to be identified by first name only, disagreed.

"We shouldn't be supporting Ukraine. We think he [Trump] is doing excellent, whatever he says. He has information that we don't have and we trust that he knows what he is doing and he has our best interest at heart," he said.

Immigration and 'America First'

Most Republicans who spoke to the Kyiv Independent were unfamiliar with the challenges of the Ukrainian refugee community in the U.S. under the Trump administration.

Ukrainians already in the country face uncertainty over their immigration status and the expiration of temporary protections. The Trump administration has also halted new applications under the Uniting for Ukraine parole program. Some Ukrainians have faced immigration enforcement, including arrests and deportation proceedings.

One Republican participant said Ukrainians displaced by the war should be protected in the U.S. and Europe until conditions allow them to return and rebuild their country. Not everybody agreed.

"We need to be taking care of our American citizens and not so much abroad. It's America first," said April, Shaun's wife, who also declined to give her surname.

Pennsylvania state Senator Scott Martin highlighted the Ukrainian community in Lancaster County as an important part of the local area while stressing that refugees and asylum seekers should follow the legal process.

"I think where you lose most Americans, or where most people are [concerned], is when people … totally ignore the process, who don't go through a true refugee process," Martin said.

Martin's district includes Lancaster County, which a 2017 BBC report called the refugee capital of the U.S., finding it resettled refugees at a rate about 20 times higher per capita than the national average.

Mazeika told the Kyiv Independent, "It's just amazing that what we're learning from Ukraine with … the warmth here, it's starting to seep into the social culture."

As the convention closed, Ukraine remained largely absent from the party's public campaign messaging, but not from the minds of many Republican attendees who spoke to the Kyiv Independent.

"I think [Ukraine] is important for global security, the security of Europe. All people have to have peace. Why should we have people dying? Especially innocent civilian people," Gandrud said.