WASHINGTON (AP) – House Speaker Mike Johnson has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to fire his country’s ambassador to the US as Republicans criticized the war-torn leader’s visit to a Pennsylvania swing site that produced ammunition for the Russia-Ukraine war as a political stunt.
Republican Johnson’s request Wednesday came as Zelenskyy spoke to the United Nations in New York on the eve of a visit to Washington, DC, where he plans Thursday to brief senators on Capitol Hill on the war effort before meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House.
“The tour is clearly a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and clearly meddle in the election,” Johnson wrote in a letter to Zelenskyy.
Johnson said no Republicans were invited to a plant tour organized by Ambassador Oksana Markarova to Scranton, Pennsylvania, which is Biden’s hometown.
Johnson called the visit a “deliberate political move” and said it “has caused the Republic to lose confidence in Ambassador Markarova’s ability to be fair and effective as a diplomat in this country. He should be removed from office immediately.”
The speaker’s strong call for the swift removal of Markarova, a well-received diplomat in Washington who has been a fixture on Capitol Hill since the start of the war — even sitting as a guest in the House visitors’ gallery during key speeches — comes at a dire time for Ukraine as Zelenskyy works to ensure US support for the war effort in the election year.
While Biden and Democrats in Congress have largely stood with Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion in 2022, sending billions in US aid to buy weapons and support services, Republicans are deeply divided. Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has turned the GOP to a new America First movement that generally favors limiting US involvement overseas, and he often talks about Russia and its president, Vladmir Putin.
Johnson said support for ending Russia’s war against Ukraine “continues to be bipartisan, but our relationship is not being tested,” noting comments from the Ukrainian government at the top of the Trump-Vance presidential ticket.
Later Johnson, who said he would not meet Thursday with Zelenskyy at the Capitol, said the ambassador had “crossed a line” and the situation required “immediate attention and action.”
Zelenskyy on Sunday visited a Pennsylvania munitions factory to thank workers who produce one of the most needed munitions for his country’s fight against Russian ground forces.
The Scranton plant is one of the few facilities in the country to produce 155 mm artillery shells and has increased production over the past year. Ukraine has received more than 3 million people from the US
Joining for the visit are the leading Democrats in the state, Governor Josh Shapiro, Sen. Bob Casey and Rep. Matt Cartwright of the region, but it is not clear whether any Republicans are invited.
“In a place like this you can feel that the democratic world can win,” Zelenskyy wrote in X.
“Thanks to people like this – in Ukraine, in America, and in all partner countries – who work tirelessly to ensure that lives are protected.”
The visit prompted swift reprisals from Republicans.
Rep. James Comer, the Republican chairman of the House Oversight Committee, announced Wednesday that he is opening an investigation into whether the Biden-Harris administration used taxpayer-funded resources to fly Zelenskyy to Pennsylvania as a campaign event for Vice President Kamala Harris, who is the Democratic presidential candidate.
“The committee seeks to determine whether the Biden-Harris Administration is attempting to use foreign leaders to benefit Vice President Harris’ presidential campaign and, if so, committed abuse of power,” he wrote in a letter to Biden, White House advisers and others in the administration.
Senate Republicans, even those who support aid for Ukraine, criticized Zelenskyy on Wednesday. “They really screwed up,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin, Republican of Oklahoma.
However, Sen. Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee and a strong supporter of Ukraine, suggested that Zelenskyy’s visit was not as partisan as it appeared. Wicker also plans to meet with the Ukrainian president at the Capitol on Friday.
“If President Zelenskyy comes to Mississippi, he will be accompanied by Republican officials because that is what the people chose with wisdom,” he said.
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Associated Press writers Stephen Groves in Washington and Michael Rubinkam in northeastern Pennsylvania contributed to this report.
