[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 194 (Wednesday, December 14, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S7202]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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  SENATE RESOLUTION 871--CONDEMNING THE ILLEGAL ABDUCTION OF CHILDREN 
                 FROM UKRAINE TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

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

                              S. Res. 871

       Whereas, on January 12, 1951, the Convention on the 
     Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (commonly 
     known as the ``Genocide Convention''), of which the Russian 
     Federation is a signatory, came into effect;
       Whereas, on February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation 
     renewed their illegal and unprovoked large-scale invasion of 
     Ukraine;
       Whereas, on March 9, 2022, Russian forces attacked a 
     maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, resulting in the 
     deaths of 3 individuals and injuries to 17 other individuals;
       Whereas, on March 22, 2022, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry 
     announced that the Russian military had forcefully and 
     illegally kidnapped 2,389 Ukrainian children from temporarily 
     occupied areas of Ukraine;
       Whereas, on June 2, 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr 
     Zelenskyy stated that 200,000 children are among the 
     Ukrainians who have been forcefully resettled in Russia;
       Whereas forcibly transferring children of one group to 
     another group is a violation of Article II(e) of the Genocide 
     Convention;
       Whereas, Maria Lvova-Belova, Children's Rights Commissioner 
     for the President of Russia, admitted to kidnapping Ukrainian 
     children and facilitating forced adoptions to Russian 
     families;
       Whereas Ukrainian authorities have stated that a number of 
     the kidnapped Ukrainian children have families who remain in 
     Ukraine, but have been separated due to the renewed Russian 
     invasion;
       Whereas on June 16, 2022, Russian authorities announced 
     that children born in occupied Ukrainian territories after 
     the February 24, 2022, invasion will be deemed Russian 
     citizens;
       Whereas, on June 22, 2022, the United Nations Human Rights 
     Office of the High Commissioner has verified at that at least 
     320 children have been killed since Russia's renewed invasion 
     began;
       Whereas, on July 11, 2022, United Nations Secretary General 
     Antonio Guterres ordered an investigation into the deaths and 
     injuries of Ukrainian children; and
       Whereas, on July 13, 2022, Secretary of State Antony J. 
     Blinken issued a statement calling upon Russia to 
     ``immediately halt its systemic filtration operations in 
     Ukraine'', which have caused the disappearance, detention, or 
     forcible deportation of between 900,000 and 1,600,000 
     Ukrainians (approximately 260,000 of whom are children): Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) holds the Government of the Russian Federation, under 
     the leadership of Vladimir Putin, responsible for the 
     wrongful and illegal kidnapping of children from Ukraine and 
     officially condemns these actions in the strongest terms;
       (2) declares that the facilitation of illegal adoptions is 
     contrary to Russia's obligations under the Genocide 
     Convention and amounts to genocide;
       (3) claims that the Russian Federation is attempting to 
     wipe out a generation of Ukrainian children, thereby 
     crippling Ukraine's ability to nurture the next generation of 
     Ukrainian citizens and leaders and to rebuild their country 
     after Russia's unprovoked war, with the purpose of 
     demolishing Ukraine's unique language, culture, history, and 
     identity; and
       (4) asserts that the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian 
     Federation has significantly increased the risks of children 
     being exposed to human trafficking and exploitation, child 
     labor, gender-based violence, hunger, injury, trauma, 
     deprivation of education and shelter, and death.

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