Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, has died at the age of 71.<\/p>\n
His office released a statement saying he died on Saturday evening following \u201ca brief and sudden illness\u201d, adding that Graham\u2019s family had asked for \u201cprivacy during this incredibly difficult period\u201d.<\/p>\n
Elected to the Senate in 2002, the South Carolina politician was one of Washington\u2019s most influential voices on foreign policy.<\/p>\n
He had just returned from Kyiv, where he met the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday. There were no known health concerns ahead of his trip.<\/p>\n
In a social media post marking the senator\u2019s death, US President Donald Trump said Graham was a \u201ctrue American Patriot\u201d.<\/p>\n
Graham also served as Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.<\/p>\n
He was a strong proponent of US support for Ukraine. In his most recent trip to the country, Graham was working on a version of the Russia sanctions bill, which he said would give \u201ctools to President Trump to end this war\u201d.<\/p>\n
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was \u201cdeeply saddened\u201d by the news of the senator\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
In a\u00a0post on his official X account, Zelenskyy said Graham had visited the country 10 times since Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion and was \u201cwith our people when it was most needed\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmerica and the world have lost a determined leader\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n
Graham initially clashed with the US president.<\/p>\n
He told CNN in 2015 that Trump was \u201ca race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot\u201d, and during the 2016 campaign he posted on social media: \u201cIf we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed\u2026 and we will deserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the US Capitol riots in 2021, Graham gave a speech on the Senate floor in which he said: \u201cTrump and I, we\u2019ve had a hell of a journey. I hate it to end this way.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll I can say is a count me out. Enough is enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
But he later became one of his staunchest backers. He voted against convicting Trump in the 2021 impeachment trial,and supported Trump in the 2024 election.<\/p>\n
He\u00a0told the BBC in 2023: \u201cThere is a dark side to Donald Trump\u2026 and he was a very good president. But I am sticking with him because I saw what he did.\u201d He cited Trump\u2019s record on the US southern border, the killing of Iran\u2019s powerful military commander Qasem Soleimani and the appointment of conservative judges.<\/p>\n
Graham \u201cconsistently pushed for outcomes in the War on Terror that protect our long-term national security interests\u201d, his website said.<\/p>\n
He was opposed to the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan in 2021, describing it as a \u201csad and dangerous event for US national security\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cJihadists all over the world are celebrating,\u201d he added. \u201cAmerica will be seen as weak.\u201d<\/p>\n
Graham was also a staunch supporter of Israel.<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s President Benjamin Netanyahu paid tribute to Graham on Sunday, saying \u201cLindsey understood that the security of Israel and America are inseparable\u201d.<\/p>\n
Israel lost \u201cone of its greatest friends\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n