[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 7686]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 550--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING 
  PROVOCATIVE AND DANGEROUS STATEMENTS MADE BY THE GOVERNMENT OF THE 
  RUSSIAN FEDERATION THAT UNDERMINE THE TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY OF THE 
                          REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA

  Mr. BIDEN (for himself, Mr. Lugar, and Mr. Martinez) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                              S. Res. 550

       Whereas, since 1993, the territorial integrity of the 
     Republic of Georgia has been reaffirmed by the international 
     community and 32 United Nations Security Council resolutions;
       Whereas the Government of the Republic of Georgia has 
     pursued with good faith the peaceful resolution of 
     territorial conflicts in the regions of Abkhazia and South 
     Ossetia since the end of hostilities in 1993;
       Whereas President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili has 
     offered a clear plan for resolving the conflict in Abkhazia 
     and securing legitimate interests of the Abkhaz and South 
     Ossetian people within a unified Georgia;
       Whereas, for several years, the Government of Russia has 
     engaged in an ongoing process of usurping the sovereignty of 
     Georgia in Abkhazia and South Ossetia by awarding subsidies, 
     the right to vote in elections in Russia, and Russian 
     passports to people living in those regions;
       Whereas the announcement of the Government of the Russian 
     Federation that it will establish ``official ties'' with the 
     breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia and further 
     involve itself in aspects of their government appears to be a 
     thinly veiled attempt at annexation;
       Whereas the statements and counter-productive behavior of 
     the Government of the Russian Federation in these regions has 
     undermined the peace and security of those regions, the 
     Republic of Georgia, and the region as a whole; and
       Whereas the consistent effort to undermine the sovereignty 
     of a neighbor is incompatible with the role of the Russian 
     Federation as one of the world's leading powers and is 
     inconsistent with the commitments to international 
     peacekeeping made by the Government of the Russian 
     Federation: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns recent decisions made by the Government of the 
     Russian Federation to establish ``official ties'' with the 
     breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, a process 
     that further impedes reconciliation between those regions and 
     the Government of Georgia and violates the sovereignty of the 
     Republic of Georgia and the commitments of the Government of 
     the Russian Federation to international peacekeeping;
       (2) calls upon the Government of the Russian Federation to 
     disavow this policy, which gives the appearance of being 
     motivated by an appetite for annexation;
       (3) affirms that the restoration of the territorial 
     integrity of the Republic of Georgia is in the interest of 
     all who seek peace and stability in the region;
       (4) urges all parties to the conflicts in the Republic of 
     Georgia and governments around the world to eschew rhetoric 
     that escalates tensions and undermines efforts to negotiate a 
     settlement to the conflicts; and
       (5) commends the Government of Georgia for acting with 
     restraint in the face of serious provocation.

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