Laura Loomer Backs Russia Sanctions After Kyiv Visit, Signaling Shift Before Trump-Zelenskyy Meeting
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 24
Laura Loomer Backs Russia Sanctions After Kyiv Visit, Signaling Shift Before Trump-Zelenskyy Meeting
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 24
Summary
Laura Loomer said she now supports tougher US sanctions on Russia after visiting Kyiv, calling for Washington to “break Russia’s economy” and admitting her past indifference to Ukraine was wrong.
An air raid she experienced in Kyiv helped drive the reversal, and Loomer said seeing daily attacks firsthand gave her “moral clarity” after years of echoing anti-Ukraine and Kremlin-friendly narratives to nearly 2 million followers.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Loomer he expects to meet Donald Trump in Washington next week, saying their relationship improved sharply after a brief Vatican meeting in April 2025; Trump praised the interview as “Very good!!!!”.
The shift comes as Congress weighs a new Russia sanctions bill and as Russian strikes killed 11 people on Friday in the Kyiv region and Sloviansk, underscoring the war Loomer said many US conservatives have misunderstood.
In Kyiv, officials and allies cast Loomer’s visit as evidence that part of the Maga movement is breaking with Russian narratives, potentially softening a White House stance long seen as hostile to Ukraine.