[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 179 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 179

   Condemning the wrongful detainment of United States citizens and 
      residents by the Russian Federation, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 27, 2023

 Mr. Graham (for himself, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Whitehouse, 
  Mr. Coons, Mrs. Capito, and Ms. Murkowski) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Condemning the wrongful detainment of United States citizens and 
      residents by the Russian Federation, and for other purposes.

Whereas the Constitution of the Russian Federation guarantees the right to 
        assemble, freedom from censorship, and the freedom of speech and thought 
        to its citizens;
Whereas, under the leadership of President Vladimir Putin, the Government of the 
        Russian Federation has failed to protect these ideals and has used the 
        power of the state to diminish the rights of Russians and others within 
        its borders and across the territories Russia unlawfully occupies;
Whereas President Putin's regime has used the power of the state to unlawfully 
        detain individuals committed to fighting corruption within the Russian 
        Federation;
Whereas President Putin's regime has unjustly targeted and detained individuals 
        such as Sergei Magnitsky, who provided evidence that $230,000,000 had 
        been stolen from the Russian treasury by senior Russian officials;
Whereas Sergei Magnitsky died at the age of 37 after being denied critical 
        medical care while being unjustly detained in inhuman conditions;
Whereas President Putin's regime also utilizes the power of the state to target 
        political opponents and repress freedom of speech, thought, and 
        expression;
Whereas Alexey Navalny, a Russian opposition leader and vocal critic of 
        President Putin, has been unjustly detained and subject to poisoning by 
        the Kremlin;
Whereas the Putin regime has also used its power to unjustly detain citizens of 
        the United States;
Whereas United States citizen Paul Whelan is currently serving a 16-year prison 
        sentence after being wrongfully detained by the Russian Federation for 
        espionage;
Whereas, following Paul Whelan's conviction on June 15, 2020, the Department of 
        State released a statement demanding his immediate release, and this 
        statement continues to be ignored by the Government of the Russian 
        Federation;
Whereas, on April 12, 2022, United States resident Vladimir Kara-Murza was 
        arrested for condemning Russia's war in Ukraine and was charged with 
        ``spreading deliberately false information'' about the Armed Forces of 
        Russia, which was criminalized under a Russian law passed after the 
        full-scale invasion of Ukraine;
Whereas, on April 17, 2023, Vladimir Kara-Murza was convicted of treason and 
        sentenced to 25 years in prison;
Whereas additional United States citizens continue to be detained in Russia for 
        unjust cause, including American journalist Evan Gershkovich;
Whereas wrongful detention, as defined in section 302 of the Robert Levinson 
        Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741) 
        and Department of State guidance, covers the detention of United States 
        nationals, including lawful permanent residents (LPRs);
Whereas, under section 302 of the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-
        Taking Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741), the Secretary of State is 
        required to review the cases of United States nationals detained abroad 
        to determine if there is credible information that they are being 
        detained unlawfully or wrongfully and if this determination is made, the 
        Secretary is required to transfer responsibility for such case from the 
        Bureau of Consular Affairs of the Department of State to the Office of 
        the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs (SPEHA);
Whereas a referral to SPEHA, pursuant to Executive Order No. 14078 (relating to 
        Bolstering Efforts To Bring Hostages and Wrongfully Detained United 
        States Nationals Home), allows SPEHA to utilize additional tools not 
        regularly available in order to deter and disrupt hostage-taking and 
        wrongful detentions by imposing costs on terrorist organizations, 
        criminal groups, and other malicious actors who take hostages for 
        financial, political, or other gains and thus threaten the integrity of 
        the international political system and the safety of United States 
        nationals and other persons abroad;
Whereas, on April 17, 2023, United States Ambassador to the Russian Federation 
        Lynne Tracy stated, ``The right to have political opinions, or to 
        disagree with the decisions of one's own government, are fundamental 
        freedoms enshrined in both the Russian constitution and international 
        treaties to which Russia is a party.'';
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation, under the leadership of 
        President Putin, has clearly failed to uphold the values guaranteed in 
        the Russian constitution and the international treaties the Russian 
        Federation is party to;
Whereas the actions of President Putin's regime, including illegal detainments, 
        military operations against sovereign nation states, and attacks on 
        political opponents, constitute acts of international terrorism;
Whereas, under chapter 113B of title 18, United States Code, the term 
        ``international terrorism'' means activities that involve violent acts 
        or acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal 
        laws of the United States or of any State, or that would be a criminal 
        violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the United States or 
        of any State, and appear to be intended--

    (1) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population;

    (2) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or 
coercion; or

    (3) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, 
assassination, or kidnapping;

Whereas, at a minimum, the Government of the Russian Federation's treatment of 
        detained Americans, Russian citizens, and others through inhuman prison 
        conditions, including the lack of medical care, and the lack of due 
        process constitutes a danger to human life which would be a criminal 
        violation in the United States and is clearly intended to intimidate or 
        coerce the free exercise of rights available to individuals in the 
        Russian Federation; and
Whereas United States law authorizes the designation of countries that have 
        repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism as state 
        sponsors of terrorism: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) calls on the United States Government to designate 
        Vladimir Kara-Murza as wrongfully detained under United States 
        law;
            (2) condemns the wrongful detainment of all United States 
        citizens and residents by the Government of the Russian 
        Federation and demands their immediate release from such 
        detention;
            (3) stands with the people of Russia in their desire to 
        exercise freedom of speech and expression, without retaliation 
        by an oppressive regime;
            (4) demands that the Russian leadership be held accountable 
        for their inhumane and unjust actions against their own 
        citizens who want nothing less than to be represented by a fair 
        and just government; and
            (5) calls on the United States Government to immediately 
        designate the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of 
        terrorism under United States law.
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