III 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 13 

Calling upon the President to issue a proclamation recognizing the abiding 

importance of the Helsinki Final Act and its relevance to the national 

security of the United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 26, 2017 

Mr. WICKER (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. RUBIO, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. 

TILLIS, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. GARDNER, and Mr. 

UDALL) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred 

to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Calling upon the President to issue a proclamation recognizing the abiding importance of the Helsinki Final Act 

and its relevance to the national security of the United 

States. 

Whereas the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) concluded on August 1, 

1975 (in this joint resolution referred to as the ‘‘Helsinki 

Final Act’’), established a comprehensive concept of security that encompasses political-military, environmental 

and economic, and human rights and humanitarian dimensions; 

Whereas the Helsinki Final Act set out a declaration of ten 

fundamental Principles Guiding Relations Between 

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•SCON 13 IS 

States, which all participating States committed to respect and put into practice in their relations with each 

other, that have been the basis of the international order 

in the OSCE Region since its inception in 1975; 

Whereas these Principles, adopted on the basis of consensus 

by all participating States and reaffirmed through the 

years, enshrine— 

(1) sovereign equality, respect for the rights inherent 

in sovereignty; 

(2) refraining from the threat or use of force; 

(3) inviolability of frontiers; 

(4) territorial integrity of States; 

(5) peaceful settlement of disputes; 

(6) nonintervention in internal affairs; 

(7) respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief; 

(8) equal rights and self-determination of peoples; 

(9) cooperation among States; and 

(10) fulfilment in good faith of obligations under 

international law; 

Whereas the Helsinki Final Act, for the first time in the history of international agreements, recognized that respect 

for, and implementation of, commitments to human 

rights and fundamental freedoms are integral to stability 

and security within and among nations; 

Whereas, in the 1990 Charter of Paris for a New Europe, the 

participating States declared, ‘‘Human rights and fundamental freedoms are the birthright of all human beings, 

are inalienable and are guaranteed by law. Their protection and promotion is the first responsibility of government,’’ and committed themselves ‘‘to build, consolidate 

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and strengthen democracy as the only system of government of our nations’’; 

Whereas, in 1991, participating States met in Moscow and 

unanimously agreed that ‘‘issues relating to human 

rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of 

law are of international concern, as respect for these 

rights and freedoms constitutes one of the foundations of 

international order;’’ and declared ‘‘categorically and irrevocably . . . that the commitments undertaken in the 

field of the human dimension of the CSCE are matters 

of direct and legitimate concern to all participating 

States and do not belong exclusively to the internal affairs of the State concerned’’; 

Whereas the CSCE was renamed the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in January 

1995, reaffirming the continued relevance and applicability of previously made principles and provisions in a 

Europe no longer divided between East and West and as 

the number of participating States increased from the 

original 35 to 57 today; 

Whereas the Helsinki Final Act, by making respect for 

human rights and implementation of commitments by 

participating States a permanent priority in the relations 

between States, provided an international foundation for 

the democratic aspirations of peoples throughout Europe 

and contributed to the peaceful end to the Cold War; 

Whereas the seventh Principle confirmed the right of the individual to know and act upon his or her rights, which 

inspired citizens from the participating States to associate and assemble for the purposes of monitoring and 

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sions of the Helsinki Final Act and subsequent documents of the CSCE and OSCE; 

Whereas, during the Communist era, members of nongovernmental organizations, such as the Helsinki Monitoring 

Groups in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, and Armenia as well 

as in Lithuania, and similar groups in Czechoslovakia 

and Poland, sacrificed their personal freedom and even 

their lives in their courageous and vocal support for the 

principles enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act; 

Whereas members of nongovernmental organizations, civil society, and independent media across the region covered 

by the OSCE continue to risk their safety to advance the 

principles enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act, often in 

the face of harassment and threats from their own governments who are OSCE participating States; 

Whereas the United States Congress contributed to advancing the aims of the Helsinki Final Act by creating the 

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe to 

monitor and encourage compliance with its principles and 

provisions; 

Whereas many countries continue to fall significantly short of 

implementing their OSCE commitments, particularly in 

the Human Dimension; 

Whereas the Russian Federation is responsible for the clear, 

gross, and uncorrected violation of all ten Principles of 

the Helsinki Final Act; 

Whereas, for many years, the Russian Federation has ignored 

its OSCE commitments related to the Human Dimension 

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dermining the ability of its citizens to freely choose their 

leaders; 

Whereas Russia’s internal repression is directly related to its 

external aggression, including in Ukraine, Georgia, and 

Syria; 

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has 

interfered through information warfare and cyber-intrusions and otherwise engaged in deliberate and malicious 

efforts to undermine confidence in the democratic institutions and processes of other OSCE participating States; 

Whereas the first Principle recognizes the right of each participating State ‘‘to be or not to be a party to bilateral 

or multilateral treaties including the right to be or not 

to be a party to treaties of alliance; they also have the 

right to neutrality’’; 

Whereas the OSCE’s participating States bear primary responsibility for raising violations of the Helsinki Final 

Act and other OSCE documents; 

Whereas successive United States Administrations since the 

Helsinki Final Act was signed in 1975 have made the 

Act’s Principles Guiding Relations Between States a 

basis for United States policy toward Europe and the 

OSCE region as a whole; and 

Whereas Congress has strongly supported and encouraged the 

United States to encourage improved compliance with 

these Principles, including by raising its concerns about 

noncompliance in a direct and frank manner and continues to do so today: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 

2 concurring), That Congress calls upon the President to— 

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1 (1) issue a proclamation— 

2 (A) reaffirming the United States commit3 ment to the Guiding Principles of the Final Act 

4 of the Conference on Security and Cooperation 

5 in Europe; 

6 (B) reasserting the commitment of the 

7 United States to full implementation of the 

8 Helsinki Final Act, including respect for human 

9 rights and fundamental freedoms, defense of 

10 the principles of liberty, and tolerance within 

11 societies, all of which are vital to the promotion 

12 of democracy; 

13 (C) urging all participating States to fully 

14 implement their commitments under the Hel15 sinki Final Act; 

16 (D) calling upon all participating States to 

17 respect each other’s sovereign right to join alli18 ances; 

19 (E) condemning the clear, gross, and un20 corrected violation of all ten core OSCE prin21 ciples enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act by 

22 the Russian Federation with respect to other 

23 OSCE participating States, including Georgia, 

24 Moldova, and Ukraine; and 

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1 (F) condemning all other violations of the 

2 Helsinki Final Act and its fundamental Guiding 

3 Principles; and 

4 (2) conveying to all signatory states of the Hel5 sinki Final Act that respect for human rights and 

6 fundamental freedoms, democratic principles, eco7 nomic liberty, and the implementation of related 

8 commitments continue to be vital elements in pro9 moting a new and lasting era of democracy, peace, 

10 and unity in the region covered by the Organization 

11 for Security and Cooperation in Europe. 

Æ 

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