[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 53 (Monday, March 27, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2000-S2002]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 100--CONDEMNING ILLEGAL RUSSIAN AGGRESSION IN UKRAINE 
       ON THE THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE ANNEXATION OF CRIMEA

  Mr. BROWN (for himself, Mr. Portman, Mr. Durbin, Mr. McCain, Mrs. 
Shaheen, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Coons, Mr. Gardner, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Cornyn, 
Mr. Peters, Mr. Toomey, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Casey, Mrs. Feinstein, and 
Mr. Johnson) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 100

       Whereas the illegal Russian military occupation of the 
     Crimea region of Ukraine is an affront to international 
     norms, an unprovoked aggression, and a threat to regional 
     stability;
       Whereas Russian President Vladimir V. Putin has a history 
     of regional aggression, including the Russian invasion of the 
     South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions of the Georgia in 2008 and 
     intervention in favor of the breakaway region of Transnistria 
     in Moldova in 1991-1992;
       Whereas Article II of the Charter of the United Nations 
     states that ``all members shall refrain in their 
     international relations from the threat or use of force 
     against the territorial integrity or political independence 
     of any state'';
       Whereas, in 1994, the United States, the Russian 
     Federation, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine signed the 
     Budapest Memorandum, in which all parties pledged to respect 
     and uphold Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity in 
     exchange for Ukraine voluntarily giving up the world's third-
     largest nuclear arsenal, which it inherited following the 
     collapse of the Soviet Union;
       Whereas a failure of the United States to uphold the terms 
     of the Budapest Memorandum would have significant 
     consequences for the credibility of United States guarantees 
     related to nuclear nonproliferation and undermine America's 
     commitment to the principle of the inviolability of national 
     borders;
       Whereas an association agreement between Ukraine and the 
     European Union was signed in 2014, a move which will 
     strengthen ties with Europe and which President Poroshenko 
     described as Ukraine's ``most important day'' since it 
     secured its independence in 1991;
       Whereas, on February 28, 2014, Russian forces in unmarked 
     uniforms occupied strategic civil and military infrastructure 
     in Crimea and provided support to pro-Russian militias and 
     activists as part of a coordinated strategy to seize control 
     of Crimea and create the illusion of an organic, local 
     rebellion against oppressive Ukrainian authorities;

[[Page S2001]]

       Whereas, on March 18, 2014, following a fraudulent public 
     referendum that was boycotted by most Crimean Tatars and 
     Ukrainians and conducted under the shadow of Russian military 
     forces, President Putin signed a treaty annexing Ukraine's 
     Crimea region, which was immediately met with condemnation by 
     the United States and the international community;
       Whereas, on July 17, 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 
     was shot down near the village of Grabove over rebel-held 
     territory, killing the nearly 300 people onboard, an attack 
     for which the Dutch Safety Board concluded that the Russian-
     backed separatists were responsible;
       Whereas the Government of Ukraine and Russian-backed rebels 
     agreed to a now-failed cease-fire (``Minsk I'') on September 
     5, 2014, which called for the withdrawal of ``illegal armed 
     groups as well as militants and mercenaries from the 
     territory of Ukraine'';
       Whereas a Memorandum was signed by parties to Minsk I on 
     September 19, 2014, outlining their understanding of and 
     obligations to the agreement;
       Whereas the fragile cease-fire established by the Minsk I 
     agreement deteriorated following heavy fighting in the 
     Donetsk region, which included operations by Russian-led 
     separatists and regular Russian forces;
       Whereas the Minsk II Agreement signed on February 12, 2015, 
     by the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Germany, and France, 
     included the withdrawal of all foreign armed groups, weapons, 
     and mercenaries;
       Whereas, on February 25, 2015, General Philip Breedlove, 
     NATO Supreme Allied Commander, said that the state of affairs 
     in Ukraine is ``getting worse every day'' and the Russian 
     Federation has no intention of retreating from Ukraine until 
     its ``objectives are accomplished'';
       Whereas Russian-backed separatists continue to shell parts 
     of Ukraine and separatists have executed Ukrainian 
     servicemembers, both in direct violation of the negotiated 
     cease-fire;
       Whereas aggression by Russian-led separatist forces in 
     Avdiivka in early February 2017 sparked the worst fighting 
     since 2015 and resulted in significant damage to civilian 
     infrastructure and the displacement of thousands of 
     civilians;
       Whereas, despite President Poroshenko's statement that 
     Crimea is still Ukraine, and in the face of Resolution 68/262 
     adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on March 27, 
     2014, which reiterated the sovereignty and territorial 
     integrity of Ukraine and stated that the referendum held on 
     March 16, 2014, had ``no validity [and] cannot form the basis 
     for any alteration of the status of the Autonomous Republic 
     of Crimea or of the city of Sevastopol,'' the Government of 
     the Russian Federation continues to refer to Crimea as a 
     ``region of the Russian Federation,'' declaring that ``of 
     course the subject of our region is not up for discussion'';
       Whereas the United Nations General Assembly adopted 
     Resolution 71/205, which condemned the ``abuses, measures and 
     practices of discrimination against the residents of the 
     temporarily occupied Crimea, including Crimean Tatars, as 
     well as Ukrainians and persons belonging to other ethnic and 
     religious groups, by the Russian occupation authorities'';
       Whereas, during a hearing held by the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate on March 10, 2015, former United 
     States Ambassador to Ukraine John E. Herbst cautioned that 
     President Putin is attempting to ``overturn the post-Cold War 
     order established in Europe and Eurasia'';
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has 
     previously cut off natural gas to Ukraine as a bargaining 
     chip;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has gone 
     to great lengths to hide evidence of its military support, 
     including deploying mobile crematoriums to dispose of the 
     bodies of servicemembers and classifying the deaths of its 
     servicemembers during peacetime a state secret;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation is 
     directly arming, training, supplying, and commanding 
     separatist forces in eastern Ukraine, and Russian military 
     personnel maintain a regular presence inside the territory of 
     Ukraine;
       Whereas Russia vetoed United Nations Security Council 
     Resolution 2015/562, which would have established an 
     international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the 
     downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17;
       Whereas OSCE vehicles have been attacked in an attempt to 
     intimidate Special Monitoring Mission (SSM) personnel, with 
     the deputy head of mission Alexander Hug noting the attacks 
     seemed to be ``aimed at stopping the OSCE from reporting what 
     is going on [in Donetsk]'';
       Whereas Ukraine's National Security Council outlined a new 
     military doctrine in September 2015 that declared Ukraine's 
     intention to achieve the criteria for joining NATO;
       Whereas Ukrainian leaders, including President Petro 
     Poroshenko, have stated the Government of Ukraine's desire to 
     pursue closer cooperation with NATO with the goal of 
     potentially joining NATO in the future, with Rada Speaker 
     Andriy Parubiy stating in June 2016 that he is ``convinced 
     that for Ukraine, at the time of Russian aggression, NATO 
     membership is the strategic direction of our development'';
       Whereas the United Nations has reported that, since the 
     beginning of the conflict, almost 10,000 people have been 
     killed, including more than 2,000 civilians;
       Whereas the United Nations International Children's 
     Emergency Fund (UNICEF) reports that nearly 600,000 children 
     living in eastern Ukraine have been deeply affected by the 
     conflict and that 1,000,000 children in Ukraine are in 
     ``urgent need'' of humanitarian assistance, and the European 
     Union reports that a total of 3,800,000 people are in need of 
     humanitarian assistance;
       Whereas the United Nations Working Group on Mercenaries in 
     March 2016 raised ``deep concern'' about the conflict in 
     Ukraine and called on Ukraine to ``ensure accountability for 
     human rights violations committed by foreign armed actors'';
       Whereas the United Nations High Commissioner for Human 
     Rights reports several instances of pro-unity supporters and 
     Crimean Tatar activists being abducted or ``found dead in 
     circumstances resembling a summary execution'' alleged to be 
     committed by ``the de facto authorities of Crimea, or with 
     their authorization, support or acquiescence'';
       Whereas journalists have come under attack or arrest for 
     speaking out against Russian aggression, such as Pavel G. 
     Sheremet, who was killed by a car bomb in July 2016, and 
     Mykola Semena, a reporter for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 
     arrested in Crimea and currently on trial for writing that 
     Crimea was part of Ukraine;
       Whereas NATO pledged, during the July 2016 NATO summit in 
     Warsaw, to provide additional training and technical support 
     to the Ukrainian military and re-endorsed a Comprehensive 
     Assistance Package that will ensure the Government of Ukraine 
     receives further advisory support, enhanced defense 
     capabilities, and military training;
       Whereas the United States Government has committed over 
     $600,000,000 in security assistance to Ukraine since 2014;
       Whereas Congress has authorized the provision of defensive 
     lethal assistance to Ukraine in the Ukraine Freedom Support 
     Act (Public Law 113-272), the National Defense Authorization 
     Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114-92), and the 
     National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 
     (Public Law 114-328);
       Whereas, in 2014, President Barack Obama issued Executive 
     Orders 13660, 13661, 13662, and 13685, which imposed 
     sanctions blocking property of certain persons and 
     prohibiting transactions with respect to the Crimea Region of 
     Ukraine as a result of Russia's illegal annexation and 
     military aggression in Ukraine;
       Whereas NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated on 
     November 21, 2016, that NATO ``will never recognize the 
     illegal annexation of Crimea, and [NATO] continue[s] 
     supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of 
     Ukraine'';
       Whereas, on February 3, 2017, United States Ambassador to 
     the United Nations Nikki Haley stated, ``Crimea is a part of 
     Ukraine. Our Crimea-related sanctions will remain in place 
     until Russia returns control over the peninsula to 
     Ukraine.'';
       Whereas, on February 16, 2017, Secretary of State Rex 
     Tillerson stated, ``As we search for new common ground we 
     expect Russia to honor its commitment to the Minsk agreements 
     and work to de-escalate violence in Ukraine.'';
       Whereas, on March 13, 2017, the European Union extended 
     sanctions against Russian individuals and entities imposed 
     because of the annexation of Crimea by the Russian 
     Federation;
       Whereas United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres 
     on February 21, 2017, stated that the United Nations 
     ``remains committed to supporting the peaceful resolution of 
     the conflict in a manner that fully upholds the sovereignty, 
     territorial integrity, and independence of Ukraine'';
       Whereas President Putin has made alarming claims about his 
     views on Russian territoriality, stating that Russia's border 
     ``doesn't end anywhere,'' and has since announced that he 
     ``[does not] regret anything'' about annexing Crimea; and
       Whereas Ukraine celebrated its 25th year of independence on 
     August 24, 2016: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns the Government of the Russian Federation's 
     illegal, unprovoked military occupation of the Crimea region 
     of Ukraine and continued aggression in eastern Ukraine, and 
     reiterates that it is the policy of the United States not to 
     recognize the de jure or de facto sovereignty of the Russian 
     Federation over Crimea or any other seized area in Ukraine, 
     its airspace, or its territorial waters;
       (2) supports the vigorous enforcement of sanctions and 
     opposes the lifting of sanctions as long as Russia continues 
     its military aggression in Ukraine in violation of the Minsk 
     II Agreement;
       (3) calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     immediately end its support for the separatists in eastern 
     Ukraine, allow Ukraine to regain control of its 
     internationally recognized borders, and withdraw its military 
     presence in eastern Ukraine, including Crimea;
       (4) declares that the United States Government must never 
     recognize the illegal annexation of Crimea by the Russian 
     Federation;
       (5) urges the President of the United States, in 
     coordination with United States allies, to stand by Ukraine, 
     condemn continued Russian aggression, and use all possible 
     tools to combat Russian belligerence, including increased 
     economic sanctions, defensive

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     lethal assistance, and democracy and humanitarian assistance, 
     as authorized by the Ukraine Freedom Support Act, the Fiscal 
     Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, and the Fiscal 
     Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act;
       (6) urges the President of the United States to continue 
     United States support for the Ukrainian economy and civil 
     society, including continued support by international 
     financial institutions, such as the International Monetary 
     Fund;
       (7) condemns efforts by the Government of the Russian 
     Federation to intimidate and coerce nations in Eastern Europe 
     from strengthening their ties with NATO and the European 
     Union;
       (8) supports efforts by the United States Government and 
     United States allies to strengthen the energy sector in 
     Ukraine in order to reduce Ukraine's dependence on natural 
     gas imported from the Russian Federation;
       (9) acknowledges the Government of Ukraine for its 
     commitment to reform and encourages it to continue 
     implementation of key reforms, including judicial reform, 
     greater parliamentary oversight, further implementation of 
     anti-corruption initiatives, including prosecutions and 
     convictions of major figures involved in corruption schemes, 
     budget and procurement transparency and accountability across 
     government, civilian control of the military, and improved 
     end-use monitoring and sustainment plans for United States 
     security assistance items;
       (10) urges the President of the United States not to agree 
     to any final settlement of the conflict in Ukraine without 
     the consent of the Government of Ukraine;
       (11) pledges continued support for all democratic allies 
     and partners of the United States facing increased Russian 
     aggression;
       (12) reaffirms the commitment of the United States to the 
     Budapest Memorandum on security assurances;
       (13) reiterates the obligation of all nations under the 
     United Nations Charter to respect the territorial integrity 
     and sovereignty of other nations;
       (14) encourages United States allies in Europe to continue 
     their coordinated efforts to counter Russian aggression in 
     the region, including economic sanctions, increased defense 
     spending, and greater action against Russian disinformation 
     and propaganda in order to make clear that Russian efforts 
     will not go unchecked;
       (15) calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     provide greater access to the Organization for Security and 
     Co-operation in Europe's (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission 
     (SMM) in order to ensure credible international monitoring of 
     compliance with the Minsk agreement; and
       (16) calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     engage seriously in dialogue with the Government of Ukraine--
     in coordination with key international partners--in order to 
     come to an agreement that respects Ukraine's sovereignty, 
     ensures regional stability, and puts both nations on the path 
     towards a permanent ceasefire.

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