US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to attend the funeral of late US Senator Lindsey Graham on Tuesday, paying tribute to one of Washington's most influential foreign policy voices. The service will be held at the Washington National Cathedral following a ceremony at the US Capitol. Trump is also scheduled to deliver remarks during the memorial for the South Carolina Republican, who died suddenly from a heart ailment on July 11 at the age of 71.

Graham was widely regarded as a leading defence hawk and a strong advocate for robust US support for both Ukraine and Israel. Throughout his Senate career, he consistently backed an interventionist American foreign policy and frequently urged Washington to provide military and diplomatic assistance to allies. He had travelled to Kyiv just a day before his death, marking his 10th visit to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. In his final days, Graham was also working to secure bipartisan support for a new package of sanctions against Russia.

Although Graham was initially one of Donald Trump's fiercest Republican critics during the 2016 presidential campaign, he later became one of the President's closest allies in the Senate. After previously describing Trump as a "race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot," Graham went on to become one of the administration's most vocal defenders, regularly appearing on television to promote White House policies. In recent months, he also strongly supported the administration's position on the conflict involving Iran.

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Following Graham's death, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster appointed his sister, Darline Graham, to serve the remainder of his Senate term. She has since announced her candidacy for a full six-year term in the upcoming election and has received Trump's endorsement. Her Democratic opponent, paediatrician Annie Andrews, faces an uphill battle in a state that has consistently favoured Republican candidates in statewide elections.

Before entering the Senate in 2002, Graham served as an Air Force lawyer, was a member of the South Carolina Air National Guard, and represented the state in both its legislature and the US House of Representatives. He also briefly sought the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 before ending his campaign. In addition to Tuesday's memorial service in Washington, a second funeral service is scheduled to take place in South Carolina on Wednesday, where Graham will be laid to rest.

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