[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 7 Engrossed in Senate (ES)]

<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. CON. RES. 7

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Whereas, on April 11, 2022, Vladimir Kara-Murza was unjustly detained by Russian 
        authorities for spreading supposedly ``false information'' in a speech 
        in March 2022 to the Arizona House of Representatives;
Whereas, on February 24, 2022, Vladimir Putin launched another unprovoked, 
        unjustified, and illegal invasion into Ukraine in contravention of the 
        obligations freely undertaken by the Russian Federation to respect the 
        territorial integrity of Ukraine under the Budapest Memorandum of 1994, 
        the Minsk protocols of 2014 and 2015, and international law;
Whereas, since February 24, 2022, Mr. Kara-Murza has used his voice and platform 
        to join more than 15,000 citizens of the Russian Federation in 
        peacefully protesting the war against Ukraine and millions more who 
        silently oppose the war;
Whereas, on March 5, 2022, Vladimir Putin signed a law criminalizing the 
        distribution of truthful statements about the invasion of Ukraine by the 
        Russian Federation and mandating up to 15 years in prison for such 
        offenses;
Whereas Mr. Kara-Murza, in his March 15, 2022, speech presented a defiant 
        condemnation of Vladimir Putin's policies and leadership outlining his 
        corruption and malign intentions, and condemning the illegal war of 
        aggression Putin has unleashed against Ukraine;
Whereas, prior to his arrest in April 2022, Mr. Kara-Murza was poisoned twice by 
        agents of the Russian government and the Russian Federation in 2015 and 
        2017 with a military-grade agent banned internationally, likely in 
        retaliation for his defiant stance in support of rule of law and 
        democracy in Russia;
Whereas, despite having survived two assassination attempts and the subsequent 
        side effects of these poisonings, Mr. Kara-Murza regularly returned to 
        Russia to advocate for democratic representation in Russia;
Whereas independent investigations conducted by Bellingcat, the Insider, and Der 
        Spiegel found that the same unit of the Federal Security Service of the 
        Russian Federation responsible for poisoning Mr. Kara-Murza was also 
        responsible for poisoning Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and 
        activists Timur Kuashev, Ruslan Magomedragimov, and Nikita Isayev;
Whereas Mr. Kara-Murza has consistently advocated for democracy in Russia and 
        insisted that democracy in Russia must be advanced by Russians for all 
        those living in Russia;
Whereas, on May 26, 2022, the United States Senate unanimously agreed to Senate 
        Resolution 632 (117th Congress) calling for the immediate release of Mr. 
        Kara-Murza, Alexei Navalny, and other citizens of the Russian Federation 
        imprisoned for opposing the regime of Vladimir Putin and the war against 
        Ukraine;
Whereas, on July 27, 2022, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation 
        charged Mr. Kara-Murza for his engagements with Free Russia Foundation 
        and Open Russia, both of which are nongovernmental organizations 
        targeted by the law of the Russian Federation on undesirable 
        organizations;
Whereas, in August 2022, new charges were brought against Mr. Kara-Murza for 
        ``carrying out the activities'' of an ``undesirable foreign 
        organization'' and his arrest was extended for his work as a leading 
        member of Russian civil society;
Whereas, in October 2022, Mr. Kara-Murza was further charged unjustly with 
        ``high treason'' due to his public condemnations of the Kremlin's 
        military aggression on Ukraine and domestic repressions;
Whereas, on April 17, 2023, Mr. Kara-Murza was sentenced to 25 years in prison, 
        one of the highest sentences given to any Russian opposition figure;
Whereas, since Mr. Kara-Murza's arrest, the state of his health has deteriorated 
        and in addition to losing over 45 pounds, he was diagnosed with 
        polyneuropathy, a condition that under Russian law, should preclude him 
        from incarceration;
Whereas, as a result of his diagnosis, he has lost feeling in both his feet and 
        has experienced symptoms similar to those he experienced following his 
        2015 poisoning due to peripheral nerve damage;
Whereas section 5599F of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act 
        for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263) condemned Mr. Kara-Murza's 
        unjust detention, expressed solidarity with Mr. Kara-Murza, his family, 
        and all individuals imprisoned in Russia for their beliefs, and urged 
        the United States and other ally governments to work to secure the 
        release of Mr. Kara-Murza and other citizens of the Russian Federation 
        imprisoned for opposition to Vladimir Putin's regime and his illegal war 
        in Ukraine;
Whereas, in April 2022, Vladimir Kara-Murza was presented the McCain Institute's 
        Courage and Leadership Award for his unwavering commitment to 
        fundamental values and his acts of selfless courage which have inspired 
        the world;
Whereas, in October 2022, Mr. Kara-Murza was awarded the Vaclav Havel Prize 
        honoring outstanding civil society action in defense of human rights;
Whereas the late Senator John McCain said Mr. Kara-Murza ``is a brave, 
        outspoken, and relentless advocate for freedom and democracy in Russia'' 
        and introduced Mr. Kara-Murza as ``a personal hero whose courage, 
        selflessness and idealism I find awe-inspiring'';
Whereas, in April 2023, 81 Members of Congress sent a letter to Secretary of 
        State Anthony Blinken urging that Mr. Kara-Murza be designated under the 
        Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act 
        (22 U.S.C. 1741 et seq.) as ``unlawfully and wrongfully detained''; and
Whereas Mr. Kara-Murza remains a political prisoner and a victim of Vladimir 
        Putin's authoritarian state: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) condemns in the strongest possible terms the unjust and 
        arbitrary detention of Russian democratic opposition leader 
        Vladimir Kara-Murza;
            (2) calls on the Russian Federation to immediately release 
        Mr. Kara-Murza and all other Russian opposition leaders, 
        including Alexei Navalny, who are detained as a result of their 
        opposition to the Putin regime;
            (3) expresses solidarity with and calls for the release of 
        all political prisoners in Russia and Belarus, as well as 
        Ukrainian citizens illegally held as prisoners by Putin's 
        regime in violation of the rule of law as a result of their 
        support for liberal democratic values; and
            (4) calls on the President of the United States and leaders 
        from across the free world to work tirelessly for the release 
        of political prisoners in Russia.

            Passed the Senate November 2, 2023.

            Attest:

                                                             Secretary.
118th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                             S. CON. RES. 7

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

     Condemning Russia's unjust and arbitrary detention of Russian 
 opposition leader Vladimir Kara-Murza who has stood up in defense of 
   democracy, the rule of law, and free and fair elections in Russia.