[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 69 (Thursday, May 8, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               UKRAINE'S ELECTIONS--LEGITIMATE AND HEROIC

                                  _____
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 8, 2014

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, in a little more than two 
weeks, Ukraine will be holding presidential elections while Russia 
continues its campaign of aggression and destabilization. The evidence 
overwhelmingly indicates that the pro-Russian separatist militants that 
have been operating in parts of eastern Ukraine act at the behest and 
direction of the Russian government. President Putin has already said 
that the Ukrainian elections are illegitimate.
  Yesterday Putin softened his tone with respect to the May 25 
elections. Yet at this point words mean little unless they are matched 
by deeds. Putin has also claimed that the tens of thousands of troops 
deployed on Ukraine's border are being pulled back, yet so far there is 
no evidence that this is happening.
  The upcoming elections are legitimate--and more than legitimate. They 
are heroic--many people will be taking real risks of future reprisals 
in voting. Yet according to a recent IRI poll, an overwhelming 84 
percent of Ukrainian citizens said they will definitely or are likely 
to vote in the elections, including a substantial majority in the two 
regions in which the militants are active. The vast majority of 
Ukrainians do not support the separatist movement, and wish to remain 
in a united Ukraine. It is up to the Ukrainian people--and only the 
Ukrainian people--to decide their own future through democratic means. 
It is not up to Russia--whose President famously said that the collapse 
of the Soviet Union was a ``major geopolitical disaster . . . a genuine 
tragedy''. These are views shared by few of the people living in 
Ukraine, whether they consider themselves Ukrainian or Russian, and few 
of the people living in the other non-Russian former Soviet republics.
  The real tragedy here is the suffering of so many innocent people at 
the hands of militants, extremists, and hooligans--including the OSCE 
military monitors who were held hostage by the pro-Russian militants 
for more than a week. The militants have murdered a number of pro-
Ukrainian activists and have kidnapped, threatened and intimidated 
others, including journalists who simply favor democracy and free 
speech. Some 40 people are in captivity in the separatist hotbed of 
Sloviansk alone. Minorities also have reason to be concerned--militants 
have attacked the Roma community and among Russian special forces in 
Ukraine are members of neo-Nazi and anti-Semitic groups. And over the 
weekend, we saw the terrible clashes in Odessa that resulted in the 
deaths of more than 40 people.
  We must not forget Crimea, where the Russians are consolidating power 
and taking measures against Crimean Tatars and ethnic Ukrainians The 
revered long-time Crimean Tatar leader and former Soviet political 
prisoner, Mustafa Dzhemilev, has been banned from returning to his 
homeland. Other activists have been attacked and threatened.
  An overwhelming majority of Ukrainian citizens, even in the two 
regions where the pro-Russian separatists are most active and where 
most of the violence is taking place, don't wish to join Russia, and 
certainly don't want war.
  I welcome U.S. and international assistance to Ukraine's democratic 
and economic development, including for the upcoming elections. 
Especially important is helping Ukraine strengthen the rule of law and 
overcome the devastating legacy of corruption left in the wake of the 
ruinous Yanukovich regime.
  The U.S. and international community should redouble efforts to 
counter Russian aggression and to support the Ukrainian people's 
overwhelming aspirations for peace, freedom, democracy and economic 
well-being. We must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with those who want 
dignity, peace and freedom, in solidarity against those seeking to 
impose foreign autocracy and imperial rule.

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