[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 155 (Thursday, October 22, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1515-E1516]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT VIOLATES ITS SECURITY, ECONOMIC, HUMAN RIGHTS 
                         COMMITMENTS AGREEMENTS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 22, 2015

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, yesterday I chaired a hearing 
of the Helsinki Commission that examined the Russian government's 
repeated violations of its international security, economic, and human 
rights commitments.
  In accord with the three dimensions of security promoted by the OSCE 
and the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, the Commission looked at Russia's 
respect for the rule of law through the lens of three ``case studies'' 
current to U.S.-Russian relations--arms control agreements; the Yukos 
litigation; and instances of abduction, unjust imprisonment, and abuse 
of prisoners.
  Forty years after the signing of the Helsinki Final Act, we face a 
set of challenges with Russia, a founding member of the organization, 
that mirror the concerns that gave rise to the Helsinki Final Act.
  At stake is the hard-won trust between members--now eroded to the 
point that armed conflict rages in the OSCE region. The question is 
open whether the principles continue to bind the Russian government 
with other states in a common understanding of what the rule of law 
entails.
  In respect of military security, under the 1994 Budapest Memorandum 
Russia reaffirmed its commitment to respect Ukraine's independence, 
sovereignty, and existing borders. Russia also committed to refrain 
from the threat or use of force or economic coercion against Ukraine. 
There was a quid pro quo here: Russia did this in return for 
transferring Soviet-made nuclear weapons on Ukrainian soil to Russia.
  Russia's annexation of Crimea and subsequent intervention in the 
Donbas region not only clearly violate this commitment, but also every 
guiding principle of the 1975 Helsinki Final Act. It appears these are 
not isolated instances. In recent years, Russia appears to have 
violated, undermined, disregarded, or even disavowed fundamental and 
binding arms control commitments such as the Vienna Document and 
binding international agreements, including the Conventional Forces in 
Europe (CFE), Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF), and Open Skies 
treaties.
  In respect of commercial issues, the ongoing claims regarding the 
Russian government's expropriation of the Yukos Oil Company are major 
tests facing the Russian government. In July 2014, GML Limited and 
other shareholders were part of a $52 billion arbitration claim awarded 
by the Hague Permanent Court of Arbitration and the European Court of 
Human Rights (ECHR).
  In response, the Russian government is threatening to withdraw from 
the ECHR and seize U.S. assets should American courts freeze Russian 
holdings on behalf of European claimants, while filing technical 
challenges that will occupy the courts for years to come. All of this 
fundamentally calls into question Russia's OSCE commitment to develop

[[Page E1516]]

free, competitive markets that respect international dispute 
arbitration mechanisms such as that of the Hague.
  I note that U.S. Yukos shareholders are not covered by the Hague 
ruling for their estimated $6 billion in losses. This is due to the 
fact that the United States has not ratified the Energy Charter Treaty, 
under which European claimants won their case, as well as the continued 
absence of a bilateral investment treaty with Russia. This has 
handicapped U.S. investors in Russia's energy sector, leaving them 
solely dependent of a State Department espousal process with the 
Russian government.
  We were all relieved to learn that Mr. Kara-Murza is recovering from 
the attempt on his life--by poisoning--in Russia earlier this year. His 
tireless work on behalf of democracy in Russia, and his personal 
integrity and his love of his native country is an inspiration--it is 
true patriotism, a virtue sadly lacking among nationalistic demagogues.
  Sadly, the attempt on Mr. Kara-Murza's life is not an isolated 
instance. Others have been murdered--most recently Boris Nemtsov--and 
both his and Mr. Kara-Murza's cases remain unsolved.
  In other cases, such as the abductions, unjust imprisonments, and 
abuses of Nadiya Savchenko, Oleg Sentsov, and Eston Kohver, we are 
dealing the plain and public actions of the Russian government. Nadiya 
Savchenko, a Ukrainian pilot and elected parliamentarian, was abducted 
by Russian government agents, imprisoned, subjected to a humiliating 
show trial, and now faces 25 years in prison for allegedly murdering 
Russian reporters--who in fact were killed after she was in Russian 
custody.
  Meanwhile, a Russian court has sentenced Ukrainian film director Oleg 
Sentsov on charges of terrorism. Tortured during detention, Sentsov's 
only transgressions appear to be his refusal to recognize Russia's 
annexation of the peninsula and his effort to help deliver food to 
Ukrainian soldiers trapped on their Crimean bases by invading Russian 
soldiers. And the kidnaping and subsequent espionage trial against 
Estonian law enforcement officer Eston Kohver demonstrates the Russia's 
readiness to abuse its laws and judicial system to limit individual 
freedoms both within and beyond its borders.
  The Magnitsky Act that I had the honor to co-sponsor was in part 
meant to address human rights abuses such as these. It sanctions those 
involved in the abuse, and works to discourage further human rights 
violations while protecting those brave enough to call attention to 
their occurrence. It troubles me greatly to hear that the 
Administration's listings of sanctioned individuals has thus far only 
targeted `minor players,' rather than those who pull the strings.

                          ____________________