(Washington, DC) – Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) issued the following statement on reports that Russia offered bounties to Afghan militants for killing American troops:

“The reports that a Russian military intelligence unit offered to pay Afghan militants to kill American soldiers are incredibly disturbing and must be taken seriously. The President of the United States must publicly and unequivocally state that such hostilities will not be tolerated and must also show it with action to protect our service members,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “When we ask our service members to risk their lives and make sacrifices for our country it is with the understanding that we will honor their sacrifices by doing everything possible to keep them safe and to mitigate the risks they face abroad. I expect the President of the United States, his administration, and our intelligence community to brief and continue to inform the Congress on the situation and on plans to protect our troops.”