Former Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen toured the Poland-Ukraine border Thursday as Russia’s assault on its smaller neighbor rages into a third week. Refugees fleeing Ukraine streamed past the Pences, who spent about 20 minutes on Ukrainian soil near the Korczowa border crossing in southeastern Poland.
In CBS News’ exclusive video of Pence’s visit, the former vice president said the Russian military had unleashed “unspeakable violence on the people of Ukraine.”
“Karen and I just wanted to be here to see firsthand what was happening and to urge all of our fellow Americans to do your part, to pray earnestly for peace,” Pence said.
The Pences spoke with several Ukrainian refugees, including a woman holding a young child who had fled her home because of Russian airstrikes.
“I want you to know I used to be the vice president,” Pence said. “I don’t speak on behalf of our government anymore, but I can tell you the American people are with you.”
The United Nations estimates more than 2 million Ukrainians have left the country since the war began.
“Karen and I just spoke to a number of families that have left their homes — in many ways, left family members behind, to fight the war as they come here seeking safety for themselves and their children,” Pence said. He also tweeted a few photos from the trip.
Pence, who is weighing a presidential run in 2024, visited the border as part of a delegation from Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical Christian relief organization. He praised its the group’s vice president of operations, Edward Graham, for “responding in Jesus’ name.” Graham, who stood alongside the Pences as they spoke, is the son of evangelical pastor Franklin Graham. The elder Graham is the president of Samaritan’s Purse. The group has dozens of staff in Ukraine, Poland and Moldova.
Karen Pence said “it has been heartbreaking” to hear mothers who told them they had to leave their homes in the middle of the night.
The former vice president visited Poland on the same day that Vice President Kamala Harris met Polish President Andrezj Duda in Warsaw
“You have strong hearts,” Pence told a woman with a Ukrainian flag patch affixed to her camouflage parka. “Proud of you.”
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified Edward Graham as the president of Samaritan’s Purse. His father, Franklin Graham, is the president of the organization.
