[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 397 Engrossed in House (EH)]


                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                          June 5, 2007.
Whereas on April 27, 2007, a crowd of more than 1,000 pro-Russian demonstrators 
        gathered in Tallinn and riots broke out across the city;
Whereas more than 153 people were injured as a result of the pro-Russian riots, 
        and one died as a result of stabbing by another rioter;
Whereas several stores in Tallinn and surrounding villages were looted as a 
        result of the riots, and a statue of an Estonian general was set on 
        fire;
Whereas since April 27, 2007, the Government of Estonia has reported several 
        cyber-attacks on its official lines of communication, including those of 
        the Office of the President;
Whereas on April 28, 2007, and in days following, the Embassy of Estonia in 
        Moscow was surrounded by angry protesters who demanded the resignation 
        of the Government of Estonia, tore down the flag of Estonia from the 
        Embassy building, and subjected Embassy officials inside the building to 
        violence and vandalism;
Whereas on April 30, 2007, a delegation of the State Duma of the Russian 
        Federation visited Estonia and issued an official statement at the 
        Embassy of the Russian Federation in Estonia that ``the government of 
        Estonia must step down'';
Whereas on May 2, 2007, the Ambassador of Estonia to the Russian Federation was 
        physically attacked by protesters and members of youth groups during an 
        official press conference;
Whereas on May 2, 2007, the Swedish Ambassador to the Russian Federation was 
        attacked as he left the Embassy of Estonia in Moscow, and his car was 
        damaged by a crowd, resulting in a formal protest to the Russian 
        Federation by the Swedish Foreign Ministry;
Whereas the Government of Estonia has reported other coordinated attacks against 
        Estonian embassies in Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Riga, 
        Prague, Kiev, and Minsk, and the Estonian Consulate in St. Petersburg;
Whereas on May 2, 2007, Prime Minister of Estonia Andrus Ansip stated that a 
        ``sovereign state is under a heavy attack'' and that the events 
        constitute ``a well-coordinated and flagrant intervention with the 
        internal affairs of Estonia'';
Whereas on May 2, 2007, the public prosecutor's office of Estonia initiated an 
        investigation into the cyber-attacks against Internet servers in Estonia 
        and requested cooperation from the Russian Federation to identify the 
        source of the attacks;
Whereas on May 2, 2007, the European Commission expressed its solidarity with 
        Estonia and urged Russia to respect its obligations to the Vienna 
        Convention on Diplomatic Relations, done at Vienna April 18, 1961, and 
        end the blockade of the Embassy of Estonia in Moscow; and
Whereas the Embassy of Estonia in Russia has been closed since April 27, 2007, 
        and Estonia has suspended consular services to Moscow because conditions 
        remain unsafe for Embassy officials: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved,  That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its strong support for Estonia as a sovereign state 
        and a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the 
        Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) as it deals 
        with matters internal to its country;
            (2) condemns recent acts of violence, vandalism, and looting that 
        have taken place in Estonia;
            (3) condemns the attacks and threats against Estonia's embassies and 
        officials in Russia and other countries;
            (4) urges all activists involved to express their views peacefully 
        and reject violence;
            (5) honors the sacrifice of all those, including soldiers of the Red 
        Army, that gave their lives in the fight to defeat Nazism;
            (6) condemns any and all efforts to callously exploit the memory of 
        the victims of the Second World War for political gain;
            (7) supports the efforts of the Government of Estonia to initiate a 
        dialogue with appropriate levels of the Government of the Russian 
        Federation to resolve the crisis peacefully and to sustain cooperation 
        between their two sovereign, independent states; and
            (8) urges the governments of all countries--
                    (A) to condemn the violence that has occurred in Estonia, 
                Moscow, and elsewhere in 2007 and to urge all parties to express 
                their views peacefully;
                    (B) to assist the Government of Estonia in its investigation 
                into the source of cyber-attacks; and
                    ) to fulfill their obligations under the Vienna Convention 
                on Diplomatic Relations, done at Vienna April 18, 1961.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.