US senator Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump's closest allies in Congress who travelled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive US foreign policy, has died after a “brief and sudden illness”, his office said.

He was 71.

The statement posted on social media late Saturday did not provide any additional details about the South Carolina Republican, a former Air Force lawyer, and said his family “appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period”.

“Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead!” Trump posted on social media early Sunday.

“He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad!”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said “my heart is heavy this morning to learn the passing of my friend and colleague".

Thune said Graham was "a strong advocate for the United States and a strong ally to freedom-loving countries across the globe. He believed in the might of America to achieve good in the world and dedicated his life to advancing that cause.”

Graham was elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House of Representatives. He long promoted a policy of robust US military interventionism and strong national defence that in later years would put him at odds with the growing isolationist wing of the Republican Party.

But more recently, Graham had become well-known for his close ties with Trump, whom the senator briefly ran against for the party's presidential nomination in 2016.

Their relationship would begin on a rough note, with Graham calling the then-New York businessman “unfit for office”. Graham also used a profanity to describe Trump after Trump made disparaging comments about Arizona Republican John McCain, Graham's best friend in the Senate and a Vietnam War veteran.

McCain and Graham, along with Joe Lieberman, an independent, were known as the “Three Amigos” and frequently travelled together to push their hawkish foreign policy views around the globe.

Graham shifted significantly once Trump won the White House. He emerged as one of Trump's top allies – speaking with him frequently and becoming a regular presence on the golf course alongside the president – even as McCain remained a critic.

In a 2018 interview with The Associated Press, Graham explained his pivot by saying McCain taught him that the country must move forward after elections and that meant “you have an obligation” to help the president.

Graham appeared to break with Trump after the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, saying, “Count me out. Enough is enough."

But the senator returned to the fold and remained close with the president during his second term.

Graham especially advised Trump on foreign policy matters such as Iran and Russia. The senator had just announced an agreement on Friday with the Trump administration to move forward on a package of Russia sanctions.

Graham had been in Ukraine to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said that the senator visited his country 10 times during the years since the war with Russia in 2022.

“Lindsey was a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer,” Zelenskyy said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mourned Graham’s death, calling him “a great friend of Israel” and “a cherished friend of mine”.

Graham was not married and did not have children. (AP)


Edited by Edmond Fong