U.S. senators introduce bill to designate Russia state sponsor of terrorism

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) speak during an interview with Reuters, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 7, 2022. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic and Republican U.S. senators introduced legislation on Wednesday that would designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, a label pushed for by Ukraine but opposed by President Joe Biden's administration.

"The need for this measure is more pressing now than ever before," Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, one of the bill's sponsors, told a news conference, citing the killings of civilians and other "brutal, cruel oppression" in Ukraine since Russia's invasion.