WATCH: Kelly Presses Defense Nominee: “Do you Believe There are War Crimes Committed in Ukraine?”
This week, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing to consider the nomination of Elbridge A. Colby to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Arizona Senator and Navy combat veteran Mark Kelly pressed the nominee to answer directly on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and emphasized the consequences of a Putin victory not only for Ukraine but also our NATO allies.
Kelly’s questioning comes just days after President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy—and then abruptly paused aid to Ukraine.
During the hearing, Kelly talked about the broader security risks of allowing Putin to succeed: “That’s one side of the risk calculation; the other side is Putin and how he feels. My concern is that if we set the conditions where he feels […] that this was worthwhile for him—he gained territory, and maybe Ukraine is not a member of NATO—that puts our European allies at risk, regardless of the steps they take now. And I’ve spoken to leadership in Baltic nations, in Poland, in Finland and this is a concern of theirs as well.”
Sen. Kelly questions nominee for Under Secretary of Defense for Policy during a Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing
Click here to download a video of Kelly’s remarks. See the transcript below:
Sen. Kelly: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Colby, great seeing you and your family here. In introducing you, the Vice President, Vice President Vance, said the following, this is a quote: “You need good people in government. You need people who are going to tell the truth, who are going to look you in the eye, who are going to disagree, sometimes amicably. But actually, be willing to look you in the eye and have an important conversation, who you can trust to tell you what they actually think, agree or disagree. And that’s the kind of person Elbridge is.”
On his larger point I agree, strongly. In any business, organization, or team, you need people willing to speak their mind. It’s especially important in this role, where you would be setting the policy of the Department of Defense at a very dangerous time.
So, I’ve got a couple simple questions for you. Are there Russian troops fighting in Ukraine?
Elbridge A. Colby, nominee for Under Secretary of Defense for Policy: Yes, Senator.
Sen. Kelly: Thank you. I really appreciate your being straightforward. Is it easier or harder for the United States to shift its focus more towards the Pacific if Putin is successful in Ukraine?
Mr. Colby: Well, I think it’s certainly a critical factor. I mean, there are other factors that we talked about, but I think it would be better if there’s peace and a secure and sovereign Ukraine and a NATO that’s more capable of defending itself. That would make things easier for sure.
Sen. Kelly: If Putin is perceived as being successful, and if he comes out of this feeling that this worked out in his favor, do you think that puts other European countries at risk?
Mr. Colby: Well, I think it’s clear that European countries need to take more responsibility for their own security, and I think that’s already happening, and I think we actually want to encourage that. I mean, this is again where I have a somewhat different view than Senator Hirono. I think the dynamics that are going on where European leaders are now saying, “Hey, we’re going to actually do a lot more,” that’s actually something that we should encourage and enable. And I would say a new approach that I would advocate for and that I have been advocating for, if confirmed, would be to work with Europeans and work with the positive trajectory that they’re on now to give them more capability to do so.
Sen. Kelly: That’s one side of the risk calculation; that’s just one side. The other side is Putin and how he feels. And my concern is, if we set the conditions here where he feels a year, three, five years from now that this was worthwhile for him, he gained territory, maybe Ukraine is not a member of NATO, that that puts our European allies at risk, regardless of the steps that they take now. And I’ve spoken to leadership in Baltic nations, in Poland, in Finland and this is a concern of theirs as well.
Mr. Colby: Well, Senator, what I would say, and I think consistent with what the President, Secretary of State and others have said, is that we should, you know, really emphasis on the verify it can trust, but definitely verify. I don’t think we should take anything for granted, and I think the Europeans and our own military reforms going forward should make sure that President Putin or whoever is in charge in the Kremlin doesn’t see it as advantageous to test the boundaries, you know, of our security perimeter.
Sen. Kelly: Do you view Putin as a war criminal?
Mr. Colby: Senator, that’s the kind of thing that I just don’t want, I don’t think it’s appropriate for me and as I said, that these words are very important. I don’t think I’m the right person to be commenting on this one way or the other. There are factual matters, obviously, I can comment on that are not, but I think at this point, my honest personal interest is in making sure that I don’t do anything that would disrupt the resumption of a move towards peace that I think would benefit Ukraine.
Sen. Kelly: Do you believe there are war crimes committed in Ukraine?
Mr. Colby: Senator again, I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to be commenting on these more delicate issues.
Sen. Kelly: Can you explain how negotiations are harmed if we state something that is self-evident? How does that harm negotiations?
Mr. Colby: Well, Senator, I think in all negotiations, there’s often time and place you can have something in a private conversation that’s much different. I think we should be clear-eyed and understanding about what’s going on and be frank with the Russians and others. But I think having that in public is a very different, I mean, for instance, the One China policy, I think we’ve touched on it. There are certain things that we understand that are delicate.
Sen. Kelly: You mention in public, so you don’t think it’s a good idea to negotiate things in public?
Mr. Colby: I generally think that these things should be, you know, conducted behind closed doors in the appropriate form. Sometimes it might be in public, but I think that’s not something that I’m driving the train on, nor when I’m being considered for a job.
Sen. Kelly: I agree with you. I don’t think we should negotiate in public. That did not happen last week.
Mr. Colby: My understanding is that the President and the Vice President’s point was exactly that, so.
Sen. Kelly: Well, on another subject, we at DOD are focused on providing, and I know I’m out of time, Mr. Chairman, but we talked about asymmetric advantage in my office in the Indo PACOM AOR. It’s important we maintain, in my view, an asymmetric advantage. I hope you take a very close look at NGAD as we move forward, assuming you’re confirmed for this role.
Mr. Colby: Thank you, Senator. I would welcome that. I’d certainly commit to taking a much closer look at.
Sen. Kelly: Thank you.
