[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 24, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1831-S1832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE ATTACKS ON THE 
                CIVILIAN POPULATION IN MARIUPOL, UKRAINE

  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Foreign Relations be discharged from further consideration 
of and the Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 72.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 72) expressing the sense of the 
     Senate regarding the January 24, 2015, attacks carried out by 
     Russian-backed rebels on the civilian population in Mariupol, 
     Ukraine, and the provision of lethal and non-lethal military 
     assistance to Ukraine.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Lee 
amendment be agreed to and that the Senate now vote on adoption of the 
resolution, as amended.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 598) was agreed to, as follows:

    (Purpose: To urge the President to prioritize and expedite the 
  provision of lethal and non-lethal military assistance to Ukraine, 
     consistent with United States national interests and policies)

       On page 4, beginning on line 6, strike ``provide'' and all 
     that follows through ``unanimously supported by Congress'' on 
     lines 7 and 8 and insert ``prioritize and expedite the 
     provision of defensive lethal and non-lethal military 
     assistance to Ukraine, consistent with United States national 
     interests and policies, as authorized and supported by 
     Congress''.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the resolution, 
as amended.
  The resolution (S. Res. 72), as amended, was agreed to.
  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the preamble 
be agreed to, the Leahy amendment to the title be agreed to, and the 
motions to reconsider be laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, as amended, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                               S. Res. 72

       Whereas Russian-backed rebels continue to expand their 
     campaign in Ukraine, which has already claimed more than 
     5,000 lives and generated an estimated 1,500,000 refugees and 
     internally displaced persons;
       Whereas, on January 23, 2015, Russian-backed rebels pulled 
     out of peace talks with Western leaders;

[[Page S1832]]

       Whereas, on January 24, 2015, the Ukrainian port city of 
     Mariupol received rocket fire from territory in the Donetsk 
     region controlled by rebels;
       Whereas, on January 24, 2015, Alexander Zakharchenko, 
     leader of the Russian-backed rebel Donetsk People's Republic, 
     publicly announced that his troops had launched an offensive 
     against Mariupol;
       Whereas Mariupol is strategically located on the Sea of 
     Azov and is a sea link between Russian-occupied Crimea and 
     Russia, and could be used to form part of a land bridge 
     between Crimea and Russia;
       Whereas the indiscriminate attack on Mariupol killed 30 
     people, including 2 children, and wounded 102 in markets, 
     homes, and schools;
       Whereas, on April 19, 2000, the United Nations Security 
     Council adopted Resolution 1296, reaffirming its strong 
     condemnation of the deliberate targeting of civilians;
       Whereas, even after the Russian Federation and the Russian-
     backed rebels signed a ceasefire agreement called the Minsk 
     Protocol in September 2014, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, 
     General Philip Breedlove, reported in November 2014 the 
     movement of ``Russian troops, Russian artillery, Russian air 
     defense systems, and Russian combat troops'' into Ukraine;
       Whereas, on January 24, 2015, NATO Secretary General Jens 
     Stoltenberg stated, ``For several months we have seen the 
     presence of Russian forces in eastern Ukraine, as well as a 
     substantial increase in Russian heavy equipment such as 
     tanks, artillery, and advanced air defense systems. Russian 
     troops in eastern Ukraine are supporting these offensive 
     operations with command and control systems, air defense 
     systems with advanced surface-to-air missiles, unmanned 
     aerial systems, advanced multiple rocket launcher systems, 
     and electronic warfare systems.'';
       Whereas, on January 25, 2015, after Russian-backed rebels 
     attacked Mariupol, European Council President Donald Tusk 
     wrote, ``Once again appeasement encourages the aggressor to 
     greater acts of violence; time to step up our policy based on 
     cold facts, not illusions.'';
       Whereas, on November 19, 2014, at a Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate confirmation hearing, Deputy National 
     Security Adviser Anthony Blinken stated that the provision of 
     defensive lethal assistance to the Government of Ukraine 
     ``remains on the table. It's something we're looking at.'';
       Whereas the Ukraine Freedom Support Act (Public Law 113-
     272), which was passed by Congress unanimously and signed 
     into law by the President on December 18, 2014, states that 
     it is the policy of the United States to further assist the 
     Government of Ukraine in restoring its sovereignty and its 
     territorial integrity to deter the Government of the Russian 
     Federation from further destabilizing and invading Ukraine 
     and other independent countries in Central and Eastern 
     Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia; and
       Whereas the Ukraine Freedom Support Act authorizes 
     $350,000,000 in fiscal years 2015-2017 for the President to 
     provide the Government of Ukraine with defense articles, 
     defense services, and military training for the purpose of 
     countering offensive weapons and reestablishing the 
     sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including 
     anti-tank and anti-armor weapons; crew weapons and 
     ammunition; counter-artillery radars; fire control and 
     guidance equipment; surveillance drones; and secure command 
     and communications equipment: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,

     SECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

       The Senate--
       (1) condemns the attack on Mariupol by Russian-backed 
     rebels;
       (2) urges the President to prioritize and expedite the 
     provision of defensive lethal and non-lethal military 
     assistance to Ukraine, consistent with United States national 
     interests and policies, as authorized and supported by 
     Congress in the Ukraine Freedom Support Act of 2014 (Public 
     Law 113-272);
       (3) calls on the United States, its European allies, and 
     the international community to continue to apply economic and 
     other forms of pressure on the Russian Federation, especially 
     in the form of sanctions, if the Government of the Russian 
     Federation continues to refuse to cease its aggression in 
     Ukraine;
       (4) calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     immediately end its support for the rebels in eastern 
     Ukraine, allow Ukraine to regain control of its 
     internationally recognized borders, and withdraw its military 
     presence in eastern Ukraine; and
       (5) expresses solidarity with the people of Ukraine 
     regarding the humanitarian crisis in their country and the 
     destruction caused by the military, financial, and 
     ideological support of the Government of the Russian 
     Federation for the rebels in eastern Ukraine.

     SEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

       Nothing in this resolution shall be construed as an 
     authorization for the use of force or a declaration of war.
  The amendment (No. 599) was agreed to, as follows:

                     (Purpose: To amend the title)

       Amend the title so as to read: ``A resolution expressing 
     the sense of the Senate regarding the January 24, 2015, 
     attacks carried out by Russian-backed rebels on the civilian 
     population in Mariupol, Ukraine, and the provision of 
     defensive lethal and non-lethal military assistance to 
     Ukraine.''.

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