[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 37 (Thursday, March 2, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1582-S1583]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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SENATE RESOLUTION 78--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE RECOGNIZING 3 
            YEARS OF RUSSIAN MILITARY AGGRESSION IN UKRAINE

  Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself and Mr. Graham) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.:

                               S. Res. 78

       Whereas, according to conservative estimates from the 
     United Nations, approximately 10,000 people have been killed, 
     over 20,000 wounded, and nearly 2,000,000 internally 
     displaced since the current conflict in Ukraine began in 
     2014;
       Whereas, March 1, 2014, marks 3 years since the Government 
     of the Russian Federation authorized military forces to 
     illegally annex the Crimean region of Ukraine;
       Whereas the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances 
     signed by the Russian Federation in December 1994 provided 
     security assurances against the threats or use of force 
     against the territorial integrity or political independence 
     of Ukraine;
       Whereas the United States and other countries stated in a 
     letter to the United Nations that the Russian annexation of 
     Crimea in 2014 was a violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and 
     territorial integrity and thus was a breach of the Budapest 
     Memorandum;
       Whereas, in September 2014, the Russian Federation signed 
     the Minsk I Protocol, which called for an immediate ceasefire 
     and effective monitoring by the Organization for Security and 
     Co-operation in Europe (OSCE);
       Whereas, in February 2015, the Russian Federation signed 
     the Minsk II Protocol, which again called for an immediate 
     ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons, and effective 
     monitoring by the OSCE;
       Whereas Russian, Ukrainian, and European representatives 
     reaffirmed their commitment to the Minsk agreements at the 
     2017 Munich Security Conference;
       Whereas Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recently stated 
     that the United States expects ``Russia to honor its 
     commitments to the Minsk agreements and work to de-escalate 
     violence in Ukraine'';
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation, despite 
     its commitments to these peace accords, continues to 
     destabilize Ukraine through a variety of military and 
     political maneuvers;
       Whereas OSCE observers still do not have full, unimpeded 
     access to the Ukrainian-Russian border;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation continues 
     to supply weapons, equipment, and personnel to separatists 
     intent on undermining the sovereignty of Ukraine and who 
     recently relaunched a campaign of aggression in January 2017;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has yet to 
     withdraw its heavy weapons from Ukraine and continues its 
     sabotage and subversion efforts;
       Whereas Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order 
     recognizing passports issued by separatist rebels in Eastern 
     Ukraine;
       Whereas the Ukraine Freedom Support Act of 2014 (Public Law 
     113-272) authorized increased military and economic 
     assistance for Ukraine;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation continues 
     to engage in a campaign of disinformation about the conflict 
     in both Ukraine and the West;
       Whereas the defense minister of the Russian Federation 
     recently announced the formation of ``information warfare 
     troops'';
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has 
     mobilized up to 100,000 troops to Belarus' border with 
     Lithuania and Poland, reminiscent of actions taken at the 
     Ukrainian border in 2014; and
       Whereas it is long-standing policy of the United States 
     Government not to recognize territorial changes effected by 
     force alone: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns continued Russian military intervention in the 
     sovereign state of Ukraine;
       (2) calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     immediately cease all activity that seeks to normalize or 
     recognize the Russian-backed rebel separatists in Eastern 
     Ukraine;
       (3) affirms that sanctions imposed on the Russian 
     Federation for destabilizing the international order in 
     Eastern Europe should not be lifted until the Russian 
     Federation complies with all terms of the Minsk agreements 
     and ceases its illegal attempts to annex Ukraine's Crimea; 
     and
       (4) calls on the United States Government, United States 
     allies in Europe, the United Nations, and international 
     partners to continue to pressure the Government of the 
     Russian Federation to uphold its international obligations.

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