Florida Governor and Republican candidate for U.S. President DeSantis opposes Ukraine in NATO

"I don't think NATO membership is in our interest. All that would do is add more obligations to [the United States], so if you’re adding more obligations, then what benefits are we getting in return?” he was reported as saying.

DeSanti reiterated his belief that the United States should not provide Ukraine with a "blank check" if it doesn't utilize leverage to end the conflict.

This is not the first time he has made such remarks. In a previous interview with Fox News, he argued that aiding Ukraine in its ongoing conflict with Russia is "not in the interests of the United States" and referred to the conflict as a "territorial dispute."

DeSantis distanced himself from Republicans who assert that the problem with President Joe Biden's policy towards Ukraine lies in not doing enough and expressed his opposition to supplying Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets and long-range missiles.

In response, the Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Ministry invited DeSantis to visit the country "to get a deeper understanding of Russia's full-scale invasion and the threats it poses to U.S. interests."

Following criticism, DeSantis argued that Russia "had no right" to conduct a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, nor to annex Crimea in 2014, and expressed confidence that Russia would not emerge victorious in this war. He also stated that Russia's war against Ukraine is a "secondary interest" for the United States.