U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar spent New Year's Eve day with the president of Ukraine and marines fighting Russian aggression in that country.

Klobuchar is part of a bipartisan congressional delegation meeting with foreign officials that includes Senators John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

"It was an honor to thank the soldiers who have been on the front line of the battle in Ukraine," Klobuchar said in a statement. "With more than 10,000 lives lost since Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, firsthand accounts from Ukraine's leaders and troops serve as critical reminders that we must stand with our Eastern European allies and stand up against Russian aggression." 

The senators accompanied Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to areas in southeastern Ukraine that have been at the heart of the fight against Russian-controlled separatists, including Mariupol and Shyrokyne.

Minnesota is home to more than 14,000 Ukrainian Americans.