[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 70 (Thursday, April 22, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2178-S2179]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 176--URGING ALL PARTIES IN GEORGIA TO SEEK PROMPT 
     IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AGREEMENT SIGNED ON APRIL 19, 2021, AND 
  REAFFIRMING THE SUPPORT OF THE SENATE FOR GEORGIA, THE TERRITORIAL 
  INTEGRITY OF GEORGIA, AND THE ASPIRATIONS OF GEORGIANS TO JOIN THE 
                        EURO-ATLANTIC COMMUNITY

  Mr. JOHNSON (for himself, Mrs. Shaheen, and Mr. Risch) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                              S. Res. 176

       Whereas, on April 9, 1991, Georgia declared independence 
     from the Soviet Union, and on March 24, 1992, the United 
     States and Georgia established formal diplomatic relations;
       Whereas, since 1993, the territorial integrity of Georgia 
     has been reaffirmed by the international community and 
     numerous United Nations Security Council resolutions;
       Whereas, at the 2008 Summit in Bucharest, the North 
     Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) recognized the 
     aspirations of Georgia to join NATO and agreed that Georgia 
     would become a member of the Alliance;
       Whereas, on January 9, 2009, the United States and Georgia 
     signed the United States-Georgia Charter on Strategic 
     Partnership, affirming the close relationship between the 
     United States and Georgia based on the

[[Page S2179]]

     shared principles of democracy, free markets, defense and 
     security cooperation, and cultural exchanges;
       Whereas Georgia has made significant contributions to the 
     wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and remains the largest troop 
     contributor among NATO partners to the NATO-led Resolute 
     Support Mission in Afghanistan;
       Whereas the United States supports the sovereignty and 
     territorial integrity of Georgia within its internationally 
     recognized borders and condemns the continued occupation by 
     the Russian Federation of the Georgian regions of South 
     Ossetia and Abkhazia;
       Whereas, in March 2020, the United States and several 
     embassies of European countries in Georgia brokered an 
     agreement among the major political parties in Georgia, which 
     included changes to the electoral system and called on all 
     sides to address the appearance of political interference in 
     the judicial system;
       Whereas, on June 29, 2020, the Parliament of Georgia 
     adopted constitutional amendments, establishing a more 
     proportional electoral system and promoting greater political 
     pluralism in future parliaments;
       Whereas the United States Embassy in Tbilisi applauded 
     Georgia's electoral reforms and urged the Parliament of 
     Georgia to pass additional legislation that fully 
     incorporates all of the recommendations of the Office for 
     Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization 
     for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) and 
     urged Georgian authorities to effectively implement such 
     legislation;
       Whereas, on October 31, 2020, Georgia held its first 
     parliamentary elections since adopting the electoral reforms 
     in June 2020;
       Whereas the OSCE/ODIHR limited election observation team 
     detailed a number of flaws and partially or completely 
     unimplemented OSCE/ODIHR recommendations, but also concluded 
     that the first round of the October 2020 parliamentary 
     elections in Georgia was ``competitive and, overall, 
     fundamental freedoms were respected'';
       Whereas the United States Embassy in Tbilisi shared the 
     OSCE/ODIHR's assessment of the first round of elections and 
     stressed the importance of fully addressing the deficiencies 
     noted by the OSCE/ODIHR Limited Election Observation Mission 
     Preliminary Report before the second round of elections in 
     November 2020;
       Whereas the Georgian opposition refused to recognize the 
     legitimacy of the October 2020 elections, boycotted the 
     second round of elections, called for public voter 
     intimidation of anyone voting in the second round of 
     elections, and declined to take their seats in parliament;
       Whereas, on February 23, 2021, Georgian authorities entered 
     the headquarters of United National Movement (UNM) and 
     arrested its leader Nikanor Melia on a bail violation;
       Whereas, on March 23, 2021, the Subcommittee on Europe and 
     Regional Security Cooperation of the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate held a hearing on Georgia to examine 
     the political situation and to highlight the actions that the 
     Government of Georgia and the opposition could take in order 
     to resolve the impasse and move the country forward;
       Whereas, in that hearing, Deputy Assistant Secretary of 
     State George Kent testified that the Russian Federation uses 
     its illegal occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, 
     ``economic leverage, cyber attacks, and disinformation to try 
     to force Georgia to abandon its Euro-Atlantic aspirations and 
     to sow division and distrust'';
       Whereas, at the same hearing, Deputy Assistant Secretary 
     Kent testified, ``Georgia has real work to do in 
     strengthening its democracy . . . Georgia's commitment to 
     democracy and the rule of law is a fundamental element of our 
     strategic relationship, as well as the precondition for the 
     country's further progress.''; and
       Whereas international mediation efforts to resolve the 
     political impasse in Georgia led to an agreement signed on 
     April 19, 2021, by representatives of several political 
     parties and individual Members of Parliament: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) calls on Georgian Dream, United National Movement, and 
     the other parties elected to the Parliament of Georgia to 
     fully implement the compromise proposed by European Council 
     President Michel on April 18, 2021, and signed on April 19, 
     2021;
       (2) calls on all elected Members of Parliament to take 
     their seats in parliament and begin work without further 
     delay on the challenges facing Georgia, including 
     consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, a weakened economy, 
     and challenging regional dynamics;
       (3) calls on the Government of Georgia to institute 
     systemic reforms, developed through an inclusive and 
     transparent consultation process with stakeholders, to ensure 
     that the judicial system is impartial and independent and not 
     used for political or partisan ends, including by fully 
     adopting and implementing the recommendations of the European 
     Commission for Democracy through Law (commonly known as the 
     ``Venice Commission'') and other experts;
       (4) calls on the Government of Georgia to institute 
     inclusively and transparently developed systemic electoral 
     reforms to address the underlying causes of the political 
     impasse and avoid a recurrence of such a crisis, including by 
     fully adopting and implementing the recommendations of the 
     Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the 
     Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/
     ODIHR);
       (5) recognizes that the political situation in Georgia has 
     been exacerbated by the efforts of the Russian Federation to 
     sow chaos throughout Georgia, including the illegally 
     occupied territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia;
       (6) expresses concern that impediments to strengthening 
     Georgia's democratic institutions and processes will slow its 
     progress toward achieving its aspiration of Euro-Atlantic 
     integration and strengthening its economy and could result in 
     conditions placed on United States assistance to Georgia; and
       (7) emphasizes that the United States supports a more 
     robust democracy in Georgia, with governing institutions that 
     demonstrate integrity, checks and balances, transparency, the 
     capacity to counter Russian and other malign influence, and 
     the ability to achieve the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of the 
     people of Georgia.

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