III
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 385
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 28 (legislative day, September 22), 2023
Mr. Risch (for himself, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Booker, Mr. Cassidy, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Kaine, Ms. Collins, Mr. Hickenlooper, Mr. Scott of Florida, Mr. Casey, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Romney, Mr. Warner, Mr. Hoeven, Mrs. Capito, Mr. Graham, Mr. Wicker, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. Scott of South Carolina, Mr. Young, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Fetterman, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Coons, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Ossoff, and Mr. Warnock) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
May 7, 2024
Reported by Mr. Cardin, without amendment
June 4, 2024
Considered and agreed to
RESOLUTION
Calling for the immediate release of Evan Gershkovich, a United States citizen and journalist, who was wrongfully detained by the Government of the Russian Federation in March 2023.
Whereas United States citizen Evan Gershkovich is a journalist for the Wall Street Journal;
Whereas Evan Gershkovich is an accredited reporter, with a history of working in Russia for the Moscow Times, Agence France-Presse, and the Wall Street Journal;
Whereas Evan Gershkovich is known to his family, friends, and colleagues as someone who is adventurous, curious, and who has an abiding love for Russia and its people;
Whereas Evan Gershkovich, a trailblazing and intrepid journalist, actively reported on stories across Russia, including the vast wildfires across Siberia, the COVID–19 pandemic, the Russian economy, and the Government of the Russian Federation’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine;
Whereas, on March 29, 2023, Evan Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg while reporting on behalf of the Wall Street Journal;
Whereas, on April 7, 2023, the Government of the Russian Federation charged Evan Gershkovich with espionage;
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has failed to publicly provide evidence of Evan Gershkovich’s criminal action to credibly render a charge of espionage;
Whereas the last time an American journalist was detained on allegations of espionage in Russia was in 1986 during the era of the Soviet Union;
Whereas, on April 10, 2023, Secretary of State Antony Blinken designated Evan Gershkovich wrongfully detained by the Government of the Russian Federation; and
Whereas, on April 17, 2023, the United States was joined by 46 United Nations Member States in a joint statement expressing deep concern over the detention of Evan Gershkovich by the Government of the Russian Federation: Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate—
calls on the Government of the Russian Federation to immediately release Evan Gershkovich, who has been wrongfully detained since March 2023;
urges all United States executive branch officials, including President Joseph R. Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger D. Carstens, to raise the case of Evan Gershkovich and to press for his immediate release in all interactions with the Government of the Russian Federation;
urges the Government of the Russian Federation to provide full, unfettered, and consistent consular access, in accordance with its international obligations, to Evan Gershkovich while he remains in detention;
urges the Government of the Russian Federation to respect the human rights of Evan Gershkovich;
urges the Government of the Russian Federation to respect the rights of accredited journalists to freely and independently report the news without fear of arbitrary detention or reprisal;
urges the Government of the Russian Federation to desist from detaining, imprisoning, and otherwise seeking to intimidate journalists in order to curtail or censor an independent press;
condemns the Government of the Russian Federation’s continued use of detentions and prosecutions of United States citizens and lawful permanent residents for political purposes;
calls for the immediate release of Paul Whelan, who has been wrongfully detained in Russia since December 2018;
expresses continued support for all American citizens and lawful permanent residents detained in Russia and abroad, including Marc Fogel, who faces a politicized, excessive sentence for his alleged offense, Vladimir Kara-Murza, who has endured multiple attempts on his life and years of persecution by the Putin regime, and others; and
expresses sympathy for and solidarity with the families of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and all other American citizens and lawful permanent residents wrongfully detained abroad for the personal hardship experienced as a result of the arbitrary and baseless arrest and detention of their loved ones.