RUSSIA PERSPECTIVE

Moscow, July 13, 2026. The death of Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, 71, on Saturday evening at his Capitol Hill home, is primarily presented by the Russian press through the prism of the Ukrainian dossier. Meduza and Vedomosti recall that in February 2024, Rosfinmonitoring had added Graham to the "list of extremists and terrorists" due to his tough stance on Russia in the US Senate, where he had been a member since 2003.

Emergency services intervened on Saturday evening for a cardiac arrest at his home, according to radio recordings obtained by NBC News and relayed by Meduza and RT. The death comes on the heels of his return from Kiev, where he had met with Volodymyr Zelensky on July 10 — his tenth visit to Ukraine since 2022, Zelensky noted, as cited briefly by Russian sources. According to Vedomosti, which picked up an investigation by Axios, Graham was still discussing a bill on new sanctions against Russia that he wanted to put to a Senate vote in his final hours, joking: "I cannot die now, I still have work to do on sanctions against Russia, Iran, and normalization with Israel."

Donald Trump, who ordered flags to be flown at half-staff until July 18, according to TASS, praised Graham as a "true American patriot." However, Vedomosti also noted a more ambiguous statement from the president, made on CNN: "I wanted the conflict with Ukraine to end very quickly. It seems to me, honestly, that he wanted it to continue instead." This quote, highlighted by the Russian press, is seen as an implicit acknowledgment of Graham's hardline stance, which was at odds with Trump's stated goal of a quick resolution. TASS also noted that the senator actively supported the US military campaign against Iran and Israel's actions. The Russian articles consulted portray Graham as a "hawk" whose death closes an active legislative dossier against Moscow.