The Texas Republican who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee says continued U.S. aid to Ukraine might hinge on the success of Ukraine's expected spring offensive against Russia.

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, briefly returned to Washington Tuesday after leading a bipartisan delegation to another overseas hotspot, East Asia. In addition to meetings with Taiwanese business leaders and senior officials, the lawmakers met with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-Wen about the threat posed by the Chinese government, which views Taiwan as its territory and not an independent nation.

“I know the Taiwanese very much appreciated our presence there to show that the United States supports Taiwan,” Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, told Spectrum News. 

This comes after Taiwan’s president met with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy—and China launched military drills in Taiwan in response.

“I took it very seriously. It was an intimidation tactic, saber-rattling; we all received emails from the Chinese Embassy warning us not to not to go to Taiwan,” said McCaul. “While China did escalate tensions, I think it also provides a warning to China that, you know, hopefully, it will deter any act of aggression.” 

McCaul believes Chinese leader Xi Jinping is closely watching how the West responds to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for clues to how the West might answer any Chinese attack on Taiwan.

When asked how the House Republicans feel about maintaining their support for Ukraine, McCaul said, “It’s strong, but I wish the administration would do more to help with this counter-offensive in the springtime.”

“If the Ukrainians are successful with their counter-offensive, I think you’ll see more support; if they fail, then I think you’re gonna see support going down,” he continued. 

William Inboden, a national security expert for the Clements Center for National Security at the University of Texas at Austin, says the following months in Ukraine will be pivotal.

“The lines of control have not moved a whole lot. But the Ukrainians have been signaling their plans for a spring offensive, and that they need to do that because if it’s just a war of attrition, if it’s just, you know, which side can marshal more resources, of soldiers, of weapons, Russia will eventually win,” said Inboden.

McCaul also reviewed the Biden administration’s newly completed classified report on its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

He was highly critical of how the withdrawal was handled and the report’s attempt to shift blame to former President Donald Trump, who signed the agreement with the Taliban requiring U.S. troops to leave the country.

“I never thought negotiating with the Taliban was going to end with success,” said McCaul. “But at the end of the day, you know, as Harry Truman said, ‘the buck stops here.’ And it was this president that made the decision. And again, if you’re going to do it, do it the right way and be prepared.”

McCaul also said the online leaks of highly classified Pentagon documents about the Ukraine war were very damaging, and he believes whoever was involved needs to be held accountable. 

“There are reasons to worry about Ukraine’s diminishing weapons stocks, especially its diminishing air defense capabilities. Thus far, Russia has not had air superiority over Ukraine,” Inboden said. “I hope the Biden administration is mindful of this and doing everything they can during these next few critical months to get the Ukrainians all that they need to fight and finish the job.”