Russian TV Host Rejoices at Texas Border ‘Civil War’ Hurting Ukraine

A Russian state television host has gleefully commented on escalating disagreements between President Joe Biden’s administration and Republican governors over the U.S.’ southern border with Mexico, a key sticking point complicating future aid deliveries to Ukraine.

“Maybe we want to rejoice or poke fun at it,” Russian state media host, Sergey Mardan, said in a brief clip posted and translated by the Russian Media Monitor account on Saturday, run by journalist Julia Davis.

Future aid for Ukraine has become increasingly linked to U.S. border control in the South, with new packages vetoed by many Republicans who are pushing for tightened security.

A record number of migrants have crossed the border into the U.S. during Biden’s time in office, and controls along the southern border have taken a prominent position in jockeying for November’s elections, as well discussions around foreign aid packages.

“Wherever a problem arises for your enemy, you should help to transform it into a major problem,” he added. “If trouble arises for your enemy in any area, do everything to turn it into a horrible catastrophe.”

“The United States is our enemy,” Mardan said during the broadcast, suggesting the U.S. could face a “civil war 2.0.”

“There will be no military aid in this context, for sure,” he said.

The total amount of American military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine since the war started on February 24, 2022, is over $79 billion, as of December, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German research institute that tracks international support for Kyiv.

Texas Gov., Greg Abbott, is locked in a feud with Biden over measures intended to deter migrant crossings from Mexico into the Lone Star state On Monday, the Supreme Court sided with the White House, ruling in favor of pulling down razor wire installed at border points at Abbott’s direction.

“Texas’ razor wire is an effective deterrent against the illegal border crossings encouraged by Biden’s open-border policies,” Abbott said after the Supreme Court’s decision. “We continue to deploy this razor wire to repel illegal immigration.”

Russian officials have referenced the ongoing, deepening border dispute, including former President Dmitry Medvedev, who said on Friday that “the formation of the Texas People’s Republic is becoming more and more real.”

“One way or another, America may face an insoluble constitutional crisis and plunge into the abyss of a new, perhaps even more destructive, civil confrontation for a long time,” Medvedev, the current deputy head of Russia’s security council, wrote on social media.

Responding to an inquiry from Newsweek, a U.S. Department of State spokesperson said on Saturday that “we know by now not to take Medvedev seriously,” adding: “This is standard Kremlin nonsense.”

The Department of Homeland Security has said “the Texas governor’s policies are cruel, dangerous, and inhumane, and Texas’ blatant disregard for federal authority over immigration poses grave risks.”

Abbott has the backing of more than two dozen Republican governors, who said in a joint statement earlier this week that “President Biden and his administration have left Americans and our country completely vulnerable to unprecedented illegal immigration pouring across the southern border.”

“We stand in solidarity with our fellow governor, Greg Abbott, and the state of Texas in utilizing every tool and strategy, including razor wire fences, to secure the border,” the statement added.

A bipartisan Senate bill linking border control to Ukraine aid, backed by Biden, has been criticized by former president and Republican presidential nominee frontrunner, Donald Trump. He told an audience in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday that “instead of trying to send Texas a restraining order, I will send them reinforcements.”

“Texas will be given full support and I will deploy all necessary military and law enforcement resources to seal up the final section of border,” Trump said.