Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has an
extensive history of providing weapons and political support to the regime of
President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, a country designated by the Secretary of
State as a state sponsor of terrorism
;
Whereas, at the Port of Tartus in Syria, the Government of
the Russian Federation maintains for the Russian Navy its only permanent
warm-water naval port outside of the former Soviet Union, which bolsters the
Assad regime;
Whereas the Assad regime responded to the widespread,
peaceful, and sustained calls for political reform that began in March 2011 in
a manner that has caused the deaths of more than 10,000 people in Syria, mostly
civilians, as of June 2012, according to an estimate by the United
Nations;
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation remains
the top supplier of weapons to the Government of Syria, reportedly providing
nearly $1,000,000,000 worth of arms to the Government of Syria in 2011
alone;
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has
unabatedly continued to ship arms to the Government of Syria during the ongoing
popular uprisings;
Whereas, on October 4, 2011, the Russian Federation,
together with the People's Republic of China, vetoed a United Nations Security
Council resolution that would have condemned grave and systematic human
rights violations
in Syria and would have warned the Government of
Syria of the actions, including sanctions, to be considered against it, if
warranted;
Whereas, on January 18, 2012, Foreign Minister of the
Russian Federation Sergei Lavrov criticized the sending of so-called
humanitarian convoys to Syria
;
Whereas, on January 19, 2012, Foreign Minister Lavrov
stated that, with regard to the Government of Syria, For us, the red
line is fairly clearly drawn. We will not support any
sanctions.
;
Whereas, on February 4, 2012, the Russian Federation,
together with the People's Republic of China, vetoed a United Nations Security
Council resolution calling for an end to the violence in Syria, demanding that
all parties in Syria cease all violence and reprisals and implement the plan
set out by the League of Arab States, expressing grave concern for the
deteriorating situation in Syria, and condemning the widespread gross
violations of human rights;
Whereas, on March 13, 2012, Deputy Minister of Defence of
the Russian Federation Anatoly Antonov stated that the Government of the
Russian Federation would not halt arms shipments to Syria, acknowledging that
the Government of the Russian Federation has military instructors on the ground
training the Syrian Arab Army and stating, Russia enjoys good and strong
military technical co-operation with Syria, and we see no reason to reconsider
it. Russian-Syria military co-operation is perfectly
legitimate.
;
Whereas, on May 30, 2012, Permanent Representative of the
United States to the United Nations Susan Rice condemned recent reports of an
arms shipment that arrived in Syria from the Russian Federation on May 26,
2012, as reprehensible
, stating that this is obviously of
the utmost concern given that the Syrian government continues to use deadly
forces against civilians
;
Whereas, on May 31, 2012, Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton stated that the policy of the Government of the Russian Federation
toward the Government of Syria is going to help contribute to a civil
war
, maintaining that Russian officials are just vociferous in
their claim that they are providing a stabilizing influence
, and
stating, I reject that. I think they are, in effect, propping up the
regime at a time when we should be working on a political
transition.
;
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has thus
far failed to effectively use its influence and relationship with the Assad
regime to halt the murder of civilians in Syria, including the massacre of over
100 people, many of them women and children, in Houla on May 25 to 26,
2012;
Whereas Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin
rejected appeals by President of France François Hollande for tougher United
Nations sanctions aimed at ending violence in Syria;
Whereas, on June 5, 2012, Secretary of State Clinton
stated that it’s pretty clear that we all have to intensify our efforts
to speed a political transition. . . . And we invite the Russians and the
Chinese to be part of the solution of what is happening in
Syria
;
Whereas, on June 7, 2012, Permanent Representative of the
Russian Federation to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin publicly criticized the
Governments of Saudi Arabia and Qatar for supporting the opposition in Syria;
and
Whereas, on June 12, 2012, Secretary of State Clinton
stated that “there are attack helicopters on the way from Russia to Syria,
which will escalate the conflict quite dramatically”: Now, therefore, be
it
That the House of
Representatives—
(1)condemns the Government of the Russian
Federation for—
(A)its longstanding
and ongoing support for the criminal regime of President Bashar al-Assad in
Syria;
(B)continuing to
transfer weapons to the Assad regime, which cannot be considered legitimate for
purposes of self-defense; and
(C)its troubling
opposition to resolutions from the United Nations Security Council regarding
Syria, including those recently tabled by the United States;
(2)concludes that the
actions of the Government of the Russian Federation—
(A)have enabled the
Assad regime to maintain power and perpetrate mass atrocities against its own
people; and
(B)directly undermine
the core national security interests of the United States, as well as the
stability of the entire Middle East; and
(3)urges the
Government of the Russian Federation to—
(A)immediately end
all transfers of weapons to the Assad regime;
(B)call on the Assad
regime to end all violence against civilians;
(C)support
international sanctions against Syria; and
(D)support a peaceful
transition of leadership in the Government of Syria, starting with the early
departure of Bashar al-Assad.