Lindsey Graham, pivotal US Republican senator, dies suddenly at 71

US Senator Lindsey Graham, a key Republican who went from a vocal critic of Donald Trump to one of his most loyal allies on Capitol Hill after Trump became president, has died at age 71.

The South Carolina lawmaker died after a "brief and sudden illness," his office posted on X early on Sunday. US media said emergency personnel had responded to a call for cardiac arrest at his Capitol Hill home on Saturday night.

Graham, just back from a trip to Ukraine, had been scheduled to appear on the “Meet the Press” interview program on Sunday morning, the network said.

Shortly after his death was announced, Trump called Graham "one of the greatest people and senators I have ever known" and a hard-working patriot.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he was "deeply saddened," calling Graham "a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer."

A defense hawk, Graham "consistently pushed for outcomes in the War on Terror that protect our long-term national security interests," his website said. He was a prominent supporter of Israel and Ukraine and an opponent of Iran.

Graham previously a bitter critic of Trump

During the 2016 campaign, in which Graham was among many Republicans who lost the presidential nomination to Trump, he posted on social media: "If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed ... and we will deserve it."

Graham told CNN in 2015 that Trump was "a race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot,” adding, "He doesn’t represent my party. He doesn’t represent the values that the men and women who wear the uniform are fighting for."

Later, after becoming a loyal supporter and frequent golf partner, Graham still publicly disagreed with Trump's decision upon returning to office last year to pardon about 1,500 of the president's supporters who attacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, saying it could lead to more violence.

"Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

On Friday, Graham said China could ​play a decisive role in pressuring Russia towards peace talks, helping end its war in ‌Ukraine. Graham met Zelenskiy in Kyiv. They discussed Ukraine's air defense ​needs and a Russian sanctions bill, Zelenskiy said.

Graham was staunch advocate for Ukraine

Graham said bolstering Ukraine's military capabilities and aligning ​sanctions with a diplomatic push could force Moscow into talks.

"The road to ending this ⁠war, the road to peace, passes through Beijing more than it does [through] Washington, Kyiv or Moscow," Graham told ​reporters at Kyiv's Mykhailivska Square. "China has ​an oversized influence. I'd like them to use their influence for the good of the world."

"I don't believe [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is there yet, but it wouldn't take much to get him there."

Zelenskiy noted that Graham had visited Ukraine 10 times since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.

In a Facebook post, he wrote: "We will always be especially grateful for the recognition of our people and words of admiration for the courage of Ukraine’s defenders."

Graham recently served as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and was a member of the Committee on Appropriations, the Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

A former Air Force lawyer and member of the South Carolina Air National Guard, Graham was elected to the Senate in 2002. Before that, he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994 for South Carolina's 3rd congressional district, according to his website.

He was not married and lived in Seneca, South Carolina. — Reuters