[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 18 (Thursday, February 2, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S611]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                UKRAINE

  Mr. SCHUMER. One final point: I want to take a moment to mention 
Ukraine.
  Yesterday Rex Tillerson was sworn in as Secretary of State. In 
addition to dealing with the fallout from the President's first 
engagements with Australia and Mexico, I want to call the Secretary's 
attention to the situation in Ukraine.
  Since President Trump's call with Mr. Putin last weekend, there has 
been a significant increase in violence. I hope Secretary Tillerson 
will ensure that there is a strong statement from the Trump 
administration condemning these escalatory actions by the Russians.
  I also hope my Republican counterparts will start doing what they did 
last year every time this happened: Come to the floor and demand that 
the Senate act on tough sanctions against Russia. As I have said 
before, Russia remains a strategic threat to our Nation, and countering 
them needs to remain a deeply bipartisan effort.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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