US Senator Lindsey Graham dies, a heavyweight name in foreign policy and defense

Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator of the United States, died on Saturday evening after a short and sudden illness, his office announced in an official statement.

The statement said Senator Graham’s family is grateful for the prayers at this time and is asking for privacy during this extremely difficult period.

Graham was elected to the United States Senate in 2002 and became one of the most influential figures in Washington in the field of foreign policy and defense.

The senator from South Carolina was also seen as an important ally of US President Donald Trump, while he had also served as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.

Just shortly before his death, Graham had returned from a trip to Kyiv, where on Friday he had held a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Throughout his political career, he was known as a steadfast supporter of US aid to Ukraine.

In an interview with the BBC in 2023, Graham had stressed that “Putin will not stop in Ukraine,” while adding that “being weak in Ukraine means losing in Taiwan.”