McConnell calls on Biden to name Russia a state terrorism sponsor

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Sunday he would support President Joe Biden in naming Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, which would lift the sovereign immunity protections that protect the Kremlin from civil lawsuits.

“I think it’s a good idea, and I would support that,” said McConnell, who is in Stockholm after visiting Ukraine with a Republican delegation over the weekend.

"The president could do it on his own, and I would urge him to do it," he told reporters, The Hill reported.

McConnell and Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday.

"Ukraine is not asking anybody else to fight their fight. They only ask for the tools they need for self-defense," McConnell wrote in a press release. "Our delegation reaffirmed to President Zelenskyy that the United States stands squarely behind Ukraine and will sustain our support until Ukraine wins this war."

Last week, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) joined with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) to introduce a resolution calling on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. 

The four countries classified as state sponsors of terrorism are Cuba, North Korea, Iran and Syria.