[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 85 (Friday, June 18, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7055-S7057]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS
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SENATE RESOLUTION 383--COMMENDING THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE TAMPA BAY
LIGHTNING FOR WINNING THE 2004 STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONSHIP
Mr. NELSON of Florida (for himself and Mr. Graham of Florida)
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:
S. Res. 383
Whereas on Monday, June 7, 2004, the National Hockey League
Tampa Bay Lightning team won the Stanley Cup, becoming the
second team in 30 years to overcome a 3-2 deficit in the
National Hockey League finals to win Lord Stanley's Cup;
Whereas the Tampa Bay Lightning entered the Eastern
Conference of the National Hockey League in 1992;
Whereas the Tampa Bay Lightning is the 86th National Hockey
League team to win the Stanley Cup;
Whereas coach John Tortorella has become the third
American-born coach to win the Stanley Cup;
Whereas left wing Dave Andreychuk has played for and won
his first career Stanley Cup during a 22-year career after
playing a record 1,758 games and 162 playoff games;
Whereas center Brad Richards was awarded the Conn Smythe
2004 National Hockey League Playoff MVP Trophy for finishing
the playoffs with 12 goals, including a National Hockey
League record of 7 game-winners, and 14 assists in 23 games;
Whereas Brad Richards led the league in playoff scoring
with 26 points and scored 2 power-play goals in Game 6 of the
finals, making Game 7 necessary;
Whereas left wing Fredrik Modin served to assist in 1 of
Brad Richards's 2 goals in Game 6;
Whereas left wing Ruslan Fedotenko suffered a head injury
in Game 3, missed Game 4, returned for Game 5, and scored 2
goals in Game 7, including the game-winning goal;
Whereas right wing Martin St. Louis, winner of the Art Ross
Trophy, awarded to the player who leads the National Hockey
League in scoring points at the end of the regular season,
has made significant contributions to the team;
Whereas goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, a 2-time National Hockey
League All-Star, has
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earned the nickname ``The Bulin Wall'' because of his
blockage of countless shots; and
Whereas the Tampa Bay Lightning, in its 12-year history,
has overcome great odds, including 3 ownership groups, 5
coaches, 4 general managers, and being last in the league
just 3 years ago: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) commends the Tampa Bay Lightning National Hockey League
team for winning the 2004 Stanley Cup;
(2) recognizes the achievements of all the players,
coaches, and support staff who were instrumental in assisting
the team to win the Stanley Cup and invites them to the
United States Capitol Building to be honored; and
(3) directs the Secretary of the Senate to transmit 1
enrolled copy of this resolution to the owner, and 1 enrolled
copy of this resolution to the coach, of the 2004 National
Hockey League champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, today I stand to submit a resolution
focused on the development of self-government in Kosovo. I am pleased
that Senators Voinovich, Allen, Smith, and Biden have joined me in co-
sponsoring this legislation.
I believe that Kosovo's future lies in building democracy, respecting
human rights, and fostering ethnic reconciliation. I am hopeful that
the United States will remain involved in Kosovo until it is self-
sustaining. I also believe that a successful conclusion to Kosovo's
status is crucial to Balkan reintegration into Europe and into Euro-
Atlanta institutions.
It has been 5 years since the signing of the United Nations Security
Council Resolution 1244 that marked the end of a brutal conflict in
Kosovo. Much progress has been made, but it is critical to focus on the
work at hand: developing political processes that are inclusive and
protect human rights, especially those of minorities. My resolution
focuses on the process of getting Kosovo to achieve self-governance
before its future status is determined.
The United States Senate must continue to support the efforts of
UNMIK (the United Nations Mission in Kosovo) and KFOR (the NATO-led
international security forces in Kosovo), and promote steps to foster
the development of the Kosovo economy through strengthened cooperation
with the South Central Europe region and Euro-Atlantic institutions. I
was pleased to co-sponsor a resolution submitted by my colleague,
Senator Voinovich, that condemned the ethnic violence that erupted in
Kosovo last March, and that called upon the people of Kosovo to
cooperate with UNMIK, KFOR and the Kosovo Police to identify and bring
to justice the perpetrators of the violence.
I strongly support the Administration's new policy initiative for
Kosovo, which was launched last November. It foresees periodic review
of progress by Kosovo's autonomous institutions of self-government on
establishing rule of law, multi-ethnic democracy, market economic
reform, and stable relations with neighbors. My resolution calls upon
the leaders of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Governance in
Kosovo, and upon the leaders of the political parties and communities
of Kosovo, to renew their efforts in cooperation with UNMIK, KFOR, and
the international community to achieve political and economic
stability. A critical step in Kosovo's development is a stable
relationship with Belgrade. I urge both sides to engage in direct
dialogue.
I believe that it is critical for the U.S. to continue to play a
central role in Kosovo and provide strong assistance in achieving the
benchmarks, and at an appropriate time, in determining a process
leading to final status. I urge my colleagues to lend their support to
U.S. policy in the Balkans and ask their support for this resolution.
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SENATE RESOLUTION 384--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE ON THE
DEVELOPMENT OF SELF-GOVERNMENT IN KOSOVO
Mr. LUGAR (for himself, Mr. Voinovich, Mr. Allen, Mr. Smith, and Mr.
Biden) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 384
Whereas United Nations Securitv Council Resolution 1244 of
June 10, 1999, mandates an international civil presence and
an international security presence in Kosovo, ending a brutal
conflict in Kosovo;
Whereas during and immediately after the conflict, the
people of Kosovo suffered from ethnic cleansing, war crimes,
and crimes against humanity;
Whereas more than 4 years after the end of the Kosovo
conflict, the incidence of ethnic strife in Kosovo remains
unacceptably high, and the need for the fundamental work of
ethnic reconciliation in Kosovo remains great;
Whereas the ethnic violence that erupted in Kosovo on March
17, 2004, claiming the lives of 19 people, displacing more
than 4,000 Kosovo Serbs and other minorities, and resulting
in the destruction of more than 500 homes and at least 30
churches belonging to Kosovo minorities, serves as a reminder
of serious challenges that remain in Kosovo;
Whereas the United States and the international community
strongly condemned the ethnic violence that erupted in Kosovo
on March 17, 2004;
Whereas the Senate adopted a resolution on April 8, 2004,
urging political leaders to fulfill their commitment to
rebuild property that was destroyed in the violence of mid-
March 2004 in Kosovo, and to take all possible action to
allow the more than 4,000 people displaced during the
violence to return quickly and safely to their homes and
communities;
Whereas ethnic crimes and violent reprisals against Kosovo
citizens of all ethnic groups harm the victims, their
families, and their communities, and impair their common
future;
Whereas the integration of Kosovo into Europe, and into the
international community, depends on the ability of the people
of Kosovo to overcome the divisions which have too often
marked the past in Kosovo;
Whereas an important goal of the international civil
presence in Kosovo established by United Nations Security
Council Resolution 1244 is to facilitate a political process
to determine the future status of Kosovo, taking into account
the Rambouillet accords of 1999;
Whereas ``Standards'' of democratic self governance and a
multiethnic society in Kosovo are embodied in the goals
enunciated by the Special Representative of the United
Nations Secretary General in April 2002, to include the
effective functioning of democratic institutions, the rule of
law, the sustainable return of displaced persons, dialogue
with Serbia and Montenegro, freedom of movement, a stable
free-market economy, property rights, and the further
development of the Kosovo Protection Corps;
Whereas the people of Kosovo have made some important
progress toward the fulfillment of these goals while
continuing to face challenges, particularly on issues of
refugee return and freedom of movement of Kosovo minorities;
Whereas the United Nations Security Council, in its
Presidential statement of December 12, 2003, endorsed the
elaboration by UNMIK (the United Nations Interim
Administration in Kosovo) of the ``Standards'' in the
``Standards for Kosovo'' document and welcomed the plan to
periodically review the progress in Kosovo in implementing
the standards;
Whereas UNMIK has drafted a comprehensive ``Standards
Implementation Plan'' to give Kosovo precise guidance on the
actions that must be taken to achieve the standards;
Whereas the United States and UNMIK are currently working
together with the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government
of Kosovo (PISG) to help Kosovo meet the standards with a
view to carry out a comprehensive review of the progress in
Kosovo ``around mid-2005''; and
Whereas considerable further progress toward the
realization of the standards remains to be accomplished
before the process of determining the future status of Kosovo
can begin: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the
United States should--
(1) intensify its efforts to help Kosovo achieve the
``Standards'', as set out by the Special Representative of
the United Nations Secretary General in Kosovo in October
2002, and as further elaborated in the UNMIK (the United
Nations Interim Administration in Kosovo) ``Standards For
Kosovo'' paper of December 10, 2003, to bring about a stable,
multiethnic, and democratic society in Kosovo by carrying out
the steps called for in the Kosovo Standards Implementation
Plan drafted by UNMIK;
(2) further encourage Kosovo to become a factor for
stability in the region by having good relations with its
neighbors, and in particular, by engaging in dialogue with
Belgrade in an effort to secure a peaceful, long-term
solution for peace in the region;
(3) encourage Belgrade to support the standards
implementation process in Kosovo, including by constructive
participation in the direct technical talks launched October
14, 2003;
(4) enhance efforts to provide support to KFOR (the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization-led international security force
in Kosovo), and to call upon the PISG (Provisional
Institutions of Self-Government of Kosovo) to ensure the
security and freedom of movement for all the people of
Kosovo, and the return of refugees and internally displaced
persons;
(5) urge all people in Kosovo to reject the ethnic violence
that erupted in Kosovo on March 17, 2004, and work with UNMIK
and KFOR to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators of the
violence, to rebuild property destroyed during the violence,
and to work to ensure that displaced persons are able to
return safely to their homes and communities;
(6) promote steps to foster the development of the Kosovo
economy through strengthened cooperation with the South
Central Europe region and Euro-Atlantic institutions,
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without prejudice to its future political status; and
(7) call upon the leaders of the PISG, and upon the leaders
of all political parties and communities of Kosovo, to renew
and enhance their efforts in cooperation with UNMIK, KFOR,
and the international community to achieve the matters
describe, in paragraphs (1) through (6).
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