IV 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 154 

Recognizing Russian actions in Ukraine as a genocide. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 24, 2023 

Mr. COHEN (for himself, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. 

HUDSON, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. KEATING, Mr. 

CARSON, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. SALAZAR, Mr. 

CLEAVER, and Ms. JACKSON LEE) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing Russian actions in Ukraine as a genocide. 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s illegal, premeditated, 

unprovoked, and brutal war against Ukraine includes extensive, systematic, and flagrant atrocities against the 

people of Ukraine; 

Whereas Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and 

Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (hereinafter the 

‘‘Genocide Convention’’), approved and opened for signature in 1948 and entered into force in 1951, defines 

genocide as ‘‘any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, 

racial or religious group, as such: (a) Killing members of 

the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to 

members of the group; (c) Deliberately inflicting on the 


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•HRES 154 IH 

group conditions of life calculated to bring about its 

physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) Imposing 

measures intended to prevent births within the group; (e) 

Forcibly transferring children of the group to another 

group’’; 

Whereas substantial and significant evidence documenting 

widespread, systematic actions against the Ukrainian 

people committed by Russian Forces under the direction 

of Russian Federation political leadership meets one or 

more of the criteria under Article II of the Genocide Convention, including— 

(1) killing members of the Ukrainian people in mass 

atrocities through deliberate and regularized murders of 

fleeing civilians and civilians in passing as well as purposeful targeting of homes, schools, hospitals, shelters, 

and other residential and civilian areas; 

(2) causing serious bodily or mental harm to the 

Ukrainian people by launching indiscriminate attacks 

against civilians and civilian areas, conducting willful 

strikes on humanitarian evacuation corridors, and employing widespread and systematic sexual violence against 

Ukrainian civilians, including women, children, and men; 

(3) deliberately inflicting upon the Ukrainian people 

conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical 

destruction in whole or in part, including displacement 

due to annihilated villages, towns, and cities left devoid 

of food, water, shelter, electricity, and other basic necessities, starvation caused by the destruction of farmlands 

and agricultural equipment, the placing of Russian landmines across thousands of acres of useable fields, and 

blocking the delivery of humanitarian food aid; 

(4) imposing measures intended to prevent births 

among the Ukrainian people, demonstrated by the RusVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:23 Feb 25, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR154.IH HR154

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•HRES 154 IH 

sian military’s expansive and direct targeting of maternity hospitals and other medical facilities and systematic 

attacks against residential and civilian areas as well as 

humanitarian corridors intended to deprive Ukrainians of 

safe havens within their own country and the material 

conditions conducive to childrearing; and 

(5) forcibly mass transferring millions of Ukrainian 

civilians, hundreds of thousands of whom are children, to 

Russia or Russian Federation-controlled territories; 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s State-level intent in favor 

of these heinous crimes against humanity has been demonstrated through frequent pronouncements and other 

forms of official communication denying Ukrainian nationhood and sovereignty, including President Putin’s 

ahistorical claims that Ukraine is part of a ‘‘single 

whole’’ Russian nation with ‘‘no historical basis’’ for 

being an independent country; 

Whereas some Russian soldiers and brigades accused of committing war crimes in Bucha and elsewhere were rewarded with medals by President Putin; 

Whereas the Russian State-owned media outlet RIA Novosti’s 

published the article ‘‘What Should Russia do with 

Ukraine’’ which outlines ‘‘de-Nazification’’ as meaning 

‘‘de-Ukrainianization’’ or the destruction of Ukraine; 

Whereas Article I of the Genocide Convention confirms ‘‘that 

genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time 

of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish’’; and 

Whereas additional documentation and analysis of atrocities 

committed by the Russian Federation in Ukraine may be 

needed to punish those responsible, the substantial and 


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significant documentation already undertaken and combined with statements showing intent, compel urgent action to prevent further acts of genocide: Now, therefore, 

be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) condemns the Russian Federation for com3 mitting acts of genocide against the Ukrainian peo4 ple; 

5 (2) calls on the United States, in cooperation 

6 with North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Euro7 pean Union allies, to undertake measures to support 

8 the Ukrainian Government to prevent further acts of 

9 Russian genocide against the Ukrainian people; and 

10 (3) supports tribunals and international crimi11 nal investigations to hold Russian political leaders 

12 and military personnel to account for a war of ag13 gression, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and 

14 genocide. 

Æ 


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