U.S. senators urge Trump to take tough line on Russia over Ukraine

Donald Trump is seen during his presidential town hall debate against Hillary Clinton at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. REUTERS/Jim Young

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A bipartisan group of 27 U.S. senators sent a letter to President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday urging him to take a tough line against Russia over what they termed its "military land grab" in Ukraine.

The letter, whose 12 Republican and 15 Democratic signatories included some leading foreign policy voices from Trump's Republican party, was an early sign that lawmakers will publicly assert themselves on international matters where they disagree with his White House.