Crimea Annexation Non-recognition Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 758) strongly condemning the actions of the Russian Federation, under President Vladimir Putin, which has carried out a policy of aggression against neighboring countries aimed at political and economic domination, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 758 and commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger) for his work in bringing this important measure to the floor tonight. I also commend the work of our great chairman, Chairman Royce, and our fabulous ranking member, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel), for their work on this critical issue.

As this resolution documents, Mr. Speaker, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly demonstrated that he is a threat not just to our friends and allies, but to international peace and stability. From Ukraine, Moldova, and the Republic of Georgia, to arms control violations and support for the Assad regime in Syria, Putin's continuing military, economic, and political aggression against Ukraine and others is on full display. Of course, his most dramatic action was the forcible occupation and annexation of Crimea earlier this year.

Today, as we consider this resolution, Russian forces are operating on Ukrainian soil supporting separatists that they have heavily armed. The apparent intent of the Russian-backed separatists is to carve out an area that Russia will be able to permanently dominate. This is not what the people of Ukraine want.

Already, thousands of Ukrainians have died in the fighting, and hundreds of thousands have been made refugees, with many more suffering severe deprivation. The destruction of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 demonstrated the threat to civilians in this conflict, but many more have been killed in the months since; yet these tragedies go mostly unnoticed in the West.

Ukraine is not asking the U.S. to defend it against Russia, but instead to provide it with the means with which it can defend its people and its sovereignty, but the administration has refused to do so, instead, restricting U.S. assistance to small amounts of nonlethal goods and equipment.

As Ukraine's President said when he addressed us in Congress in September, one cannot win a war with blankets. Ukraine is clearly in need of urgent military assistance. The administration must act quickly to equip it with the means not just to clothe its soldiers, but to stop tanks as well.

The assault on Ukraine isn't being carried out by military means alone. Putin has also attempted to use economic coercion on Ukraine. He has used Russia's supply of energy to Ukraine and to other countries, including many in the European Union, as a political weapon, shutting off deliveries in the middle of winter.

The United States and our friends and allies in Europe and around the world are taking action to ensure that he and his regime pay a heavy price for this aggression. By imposing sanctions on key sectors, especially financial institutions and the oil sector, we have put enormous pressure on the Russian economy, which its officials openly admit.

More needs to be done, Mr. Speaker. We must also counter Russia's ability to use energy as a weapon. The U.S. can play an important role in this effort simply by removing the unilateral restrictions we have imposed on our export of natural gas.

Finally, we must work with our allies in NATO to enhance the security of the Baltic States and other countries of the alliance that are menaced by Russian aggression. A perceived weakness could lead to miscalculation on Moscow's part with incalculable consequences. No one should doubt our commitment to NATO.

Through these and other measures, Mr. Speaker, we can demonstrate to Putin and the world that we will do what is necessary to protect Ukraine and other countries that are threatened by his imperial ambitions and ensure that they can live in peace and security.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger), a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the author of this important measure.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I thank our esteemed chairman, Mr. Royce of California, as well as Mr. Kinzinger, the author of this resolution, for bringing forth this timely resolution before us.

By approving this resolution, Mr. Speaker, the House will send Vladimir Putin a clear and unmistakable message, one aimed not only at him, but at all of those in other countries who are tempted to use aggression and invasion to achieve their objectives.

There is more at stake here than simply defending Ukraine's independence and sovereignty, although that is our primary goal. The message is that the United States will not simply stand by and silently watch the world ascend into anarchy nor allow aggressors to accomplish their goals by force and coercion.

By demonstrating to Putin that his aggressive actions will only result in unacceptable costs to him and his regime, we can prevent others from concluding that we and our allies will do nothing to stop them and that they are free to impose the law of the jungle once again.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume, and I rise in strong support of H. Res. 758.

Mr. Speaker, after the cold war, we all hoped that Russia would emerge as a modern power, governed by democratic norms, the rule of law, and respect for human rights. Regrettably, things didn't turn out that way. It is time to recognize the fact that Russia, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, is a threat to European security and to U.S. interests in the region.

We must be clear that our concerns are not directed toward the Russian people. In fact, as Putin tightens his grip, his own citizens are among those suffering the most. Basic freedoms are under attack. The media has become a mouthpiece for Putin and his cronies, and as Russia continues its aggression in Ukraine, international sanctions are hitting home, dragging down Russia's economy.

Nevertheless, we have high hopes for those inside Russia who seek an alternative, who want a brighter future for their country and for their children, so this resolution encourages the establishment of close and cooperative ties between the people of the United States and the people of Russia.

It pains me that Putin has effectively destroyed democracy in Russia. We must let the Russian people know that we stand by them against this tyrant. We need to keep supporting those in Russia who are struggling against tough odds to keep the media and civil space open, to share ideas that originate beyond the Kremlin's walls, to shine a light on the corruption in Moscow and the misinformation on the airwaves.

I think this resolution sends an important message, and I would like to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kinzinger) for taking the lead on this important issue, but I also think we should be doing more, and I am pleased to be working with Chairman Royce on new legislation to support Ukraine and further penalize Russia for its continued trampling of Ukrainian sovereignty.

I am also pleased that this resolution lays out Congress' strong opposition to France's sale of two Mistral warships to Russia, a key priority of mine over the last several months. We should all thank France for indefinitely suspending transfer of the ship to Russia, but I think we can go even further, with NATO buying or leasing the ships.

I believe that this would be a win-win-win: a win for NATO, which would acquire these powerful ships; a win for France, whose legitimate financial interests would be addressed; and a win for the countries in Eastern Europe, which would be further threatened if Russia, indeed, had these vessels.

Among those countries under Moscow's pressure are Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia, where Russia continues to stoke separatism. There was a vote recently in Moldova which rejected Putin and his nonsense, and I was happy to see it.

In the Baltic States and elsewhere, Russian propaganda fills the airwaves, spreading deceptions about the West. Across Eastern Europe, millions wait with apprehension to see what Putin will do next. They have good reason. We know that he is willing to flout international law and trample his neighbors' sovereignty, so better to stand up to a bully now than to try to reverse his future gains.

When Putin talks about going into Crimea to protect ethnic Russians, it sounds to me a very lot like Hitler in 1938 who said he was going in to Czechoslovakia to the Sudetenland to protect ethnic Germans.

During the cold war, the United States stared down the Soviet Union at the height of its power and refused to blink. We sided with those behind the Iron Curtain who stood up for their universal rights.

Today, those rights are once again under threat; so, my colleagues, let's pass this resolution, and let's keep working to meet the challenge of Russia's growing aggression.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio, Marcy Kaptur, who has been a leader in Ukraine freedom and other issues involving Eastern Europe.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

In closing, let me again stress the importance of this resolution. It is strong and it is comprehensive. It says what needs to be said, namely, that the United States stands firmly with Ukraine as it faces Russia's aggregation, period, plain and simple, and it condemns that aggregation in unambiguous terms.

But this resolution also keeps the door open to improved U.S.-Russian relations should Mr. Putin cease his aggression against Ukraine and observe the rules and norms that undergird the international order.

I urge my colleagues to support this resolution. It is very important. It is very timely. It is important that we act now.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 758 as amended. President Vladimir Putin seems to have learned nothing from history other than that power grows out of the barrel of a gun. The Russian Federation under President Putin has demonstrated an ethos of naked aggression that threatens the principle of nation-state sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Russia's neighbors.

When Russian troops were identified as fomenting unrest in Crimea in February of this year, President Putin adamantly denied Russian involvement. By April, Russia had illegally annexed Crimea, and Putin had come clean about the blatant Russian intrusion.

He admitted that Russian troops had been deployed to Crimea before the illegal annexation on March 21, and exposed the illegitimate referendum on independence in Crimea for what it was, a referendum held at the end of the barrel of a gun. As Ukrainians in Crimea flee their Russian occupiers, I cannot help but feel the reverberations of Crimea's bloody history.

What we are witnessing in eastern Ukraine constitutes one of the most audacious power grabs of the 21st century, and it is happening in Europe no less.

I recently participated in a bipartisan delegation to the Annual Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. I can attest that our NATO allies are under no illusions about Mr. Putin and they see him for what he is, a bully who will only be encouraged by concession.

The 28 nations represented at the NATO PA adopted strong language calling on NATO member countries to ``make it unambiguously clear that the illegal `annexation' of Crimea will never be recognized.''

The leadership of the NATO PA has rotated to the United States, and my colleague, Mr. Turner of Ohio, has been elected President of the parliamentary body. The world is looking to the United States to reverse the dangerous precedent that has been set in Crimea.

To that end, I am pleased to see that H. Res. 758 includes language that echoes bipartisan legislation I introduced earlier this year with my colleague Rep. Steve Chabot, the Crimea Annexation Non-Recognition Act, H.R. 5241.

Today's resolution calls on the President to cooperate with United States allies and partners in Europe and other countries around the world to refuse to recognize any de jure or de facto sovereignty of the Russian Federation over Crimea, its airspace, or its territorial waters.

Some of my colleagues may recall that in the Cold War era, the U.S. had a policy of non-recognition regarding the Soviet Union's illegal annexation of the Baltic Republics. The U.S. recognized neither the de jure nor de facto sovereignty of the Soviet Union over the Baltic Republics.

Our policy of non-recognition did not end in 1991 because it had become outdated or failed to recognize a fait accompli. It ended because the Baltic people gained their independence in 1991 almost 50 years after the Soviet occupation began, and today, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia are NATO allies.

Without a clear stance on the issue of Crimea, the West becomes unwittingly complicit in Putin's further aggression in eastern Ukraine and offers little hope to Ukrainians leaving Crimea that they will ever have the opportunity to return home.

For the United States to allow this naked aggression to go unaddressed would be truly an abrogation of our moral responsibility and would turn our back on what we should have learned from 20th century history.

Congress must make a stand, and I, for one, am stuck at Crimea.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman very much.

Let me express my appreciation to the author of this bill, Mr. Kinzinger, and to the managers on the bill, as well as, in particular, to thank the ranking member, the chairman, and, of course, the manager today. Thank you for your leadership.

I associate myself with Congressman Engel's remarks about leaving a space for affirmation of the Russian people but to make it very clear that we condemn the actions of Mr. Putin. Maybe calling him that is even too polite.

Remember the days of Gorbachev when we understood that there was an open Russia, there was a Russia who was committed to working for world peace, standing on their own principles and values and history, not denying their strength, but yet working collaboratively in a civilized way. What happened to that Russia? What happened to the Russia that was supposed to be shown to the world during the Olympics? What happened to the Russia that believed in its great history and was prepared to stand alongside of all world leaders to make a better place?

The taking over, the dominance, the literal invasion of Crimea was intolerable and an unacceptable action by a nation that calls itself ``standing civilized with other nations.'' The horrific tragedy of Malaysian Airlines and what many of us viewed around the world as we watched bodies being unattended and thugs not allowing persons to come and see to those bodies, how long they languished in those fields.

So I think it is important to ask the question of Mr. Putin: What has happened to the Russia that we have known?

I would say that this resolution condemns the actions of the government and the leadership of the government, but not the Russian people. I look forward to legislation coming forward that we all will debate on how we interact with the Russian people and provide the freedom of press and the freedom of speech and the opportunities for them.

Mr. Speaker, as I conclude my remarks, I would be remiss not to be able to acknowledge Mr. Faleomavaega, who has an excellent bill on the floor, H. Res. 714, but to be able to say to him, I consider him a great American and a representative of his community and his region and all that he has done to turn our attention to south China, east China, and the Asian Pacific region. We are grateful for what he has done and grateful for his service. I thank him very much and wish for the continued support of his legislation and his service to this country.

Let me also say that I support S. 2673, the United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act, and look forward to its passage.

Again, in conclusion, I hope that this legislation, the underlying legislation, is a statement on behalf of America, of what we mean and what we stand for.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 758 as amended, which condemns Russia aggression against her neighbors. In the past year, we have seen Russia's determination to exert influence over neighboring sovereign states such as Ukraine. Ever since November 2013, when the Ukrainian people gathered peacefully in Maidan Square to protest against a corrupt, Russian-backed government, the Ukrainian people have come under siege by separatist forces supported and armed by Russia. It is clear to all of us that in spite of the ceasefire, Russia has never intended to honor the terms of the agreement and has continued to undermine any genuine effort to stabilize Ukraine.

Here in the United States, we must fully understand that such acts of aggression undermine peace and security--not just for Ukraine, but for all of Europe and the international community. At this critical juncture when normalcy seems unattainable, the United States must stand with the Ukrainian people and support their own desire to build a free and democratic country, free from Russia's interference--in complete freedom to determine Ukraine's own course of history.

We and our NATO allies have taken important steps in support of Ukraine. We are collectively providing $100 million in military assistance and have increased military cooperation. We have imposed economic sanctions that force Russia pay a heavy price for its aggression. The international community has spoken with one voice--if Russia chooses aggression, there are clear consequences to its expansionist agenda.

But there is much more that needs to be done. I urge my colleagues to continue their

support of the Ukrainian people by passing additional legislation that provides for military and humanitarian assistance. The Ukrainian people have demonstrated time and again their will to defend their nation against a more powerful aggressor--with no expectation that anyone would come to their aid. Now, we need to do our part and give them the chance to stand up for the same values and principles that define us as a nation.