III 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 571 

Condemning the ongoing illegal occupation of Crimea by the Russian 

Federation. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 10, 2018 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. TOOMEY, Mr. 

COONS, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. CARDIN, and Mr. 

BROWN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the ongoing illegal occupation of Crimea by 

the Russian Federation. 

Whereas, in February 2014, unidentified Russian armed 

forces entered Ukrainian territory and took control of key 

military and government infrastructure in the Crimean 

peninsula of Ukraine; 

Whereas, in March 2014, the parliament of the Russian Federation gave rubber-stamp approval to President Vladimir 

Putin’s request to use military force against Ukrainian 

territory ostensibly because of the ‘‘threat of violence 

from ultranationalists’’; 

Whereas, on March 27, 2014, the United Nations General 

Assembly adopted Resolution 68/262 calling on states 


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•SRES 571 IS 

and international organizations not to recognize any 

change in Crimea’s status and affirmed the commitment 

of the United Nations to recognize Crimea as part of 

Ukraine; 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s illegal invasion and annexation of Crimea has been widely seen as an effort to stifle 

the spread of pro-democracy developments across 

Ukraine in 2014 in the wake of the Euromaidan protests; 

Whereas the Russian Federation is a signatory to the 1994 

Budapest Memorandum and thus committed to respect 

the independence, sovereignty, and borders of Ukraine 

and to refrain from threats, coercive economic actions, or 

the use of force against Ukraine’s territorial integrity 

and political independence; 

Whereas the Russian Federation committed in the 1975 

Final Act of the Conference for Security and Cooperation 

in Europe (Helsinki Final Act) to respect the sovereign 

equality and territorial integrity of other participating 

States; 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s obligations under the 

Charter of the United Nations prohibit the threat or use 

of force against the territorial integrity and political independence of other states; 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s ongoing illegal occupation 

of Crimea in Ukraine have been widely condemned by the 

international community as illegal acts; 

Whereas the United States and European Union have imposed sanctions on individuals and entities who have enabled the illegal invasion, annexation, and occupation of 

Crimea; 


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•SRES 571 IS 

Whereas the Department of State has stated in its Country 

Reports on Human Rights Practices that security services and local authorities in Crimea installed by the Government of the Russian Federation have ‘‘worked to consolidate control over Crimea and continued to restrict 

human rights by imposing repressive Federal laws of the 

Russian Federation on the Ukrainian territory of Crimea’’ and that ‘‘the most significant human rights problems in Crimea [were] related directly to the Russian occupation’’; 

Whereas the Department of State has described ‘‘an extensive campaign of intimidation to suppress dissent and opposition to the occupation’’ that has been carried out by 

Russian security services inside Crimea, including the use 

of torture and physical abuse, kidnapping, disappearances, and deportations, and reporting from independent 

human rights groups inside and outside Crimea has documented such alleged human rights violations by Russian 

security services and paramilitary groups; 

Whereas the campaign of intimidation in Crimea has resulted 

in the prosecution and imprisonment of individuals who 

oppose or criticize the occupation or support Ukrainian 

sovereignty as well as the transfer of some individuals 

from Crimea to Russian Federation territory from prosecution and imprisonment; 

Whereas the Department of State has noted that illegal occupying authorities in Crimea have also restricted the fundamental human rights of particular groups, including 

ethnic Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars, ‘‘particularly regarding expressions of nationality and ethnicity, and subjected them to systematic discrimination’’; 


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Whereas human rights groups have cited that such discrimination has been carried out in myriad ways, including 

through the outlawing in 2016 of the elected representative body (mejilis) of the Crimean Tatar people, the closing of Crimean Tatar and Ukrainian-language schools, 

and forced conscription; 

Whereas the Department of State and other international 

human rights groups have noted further continuing 

human rights concerns in Crimea, including the suppression of independent media and civil society through harassment and harsh administrative measures, politicized 

and unfair judicial processes, and poor prison conditions; 

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has 

worked to extend Russian citizenship to individuals inside 

Crimea and deprived access to public services of those 

who refuse such citizenship; 

Whereas civil society groups have alleged that the Government of the Russian Federation has encouraged Russian 

citizens to relocate to the Crimean peninsula and has 

supported the physical destruction of historical sites in 

Crimea, ostensibly to influence the demographics and political character of the region in favor of the Kremlin; 

and 

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has supported the development of infrastructure and institutional 

ties between Crimea and the Russian Federation, including the opening of a road and rail bridge over the Kerch 

Strait on May 15, 2018: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) reiterates that Crimea is part of the sov3 ereign territory of Ukraine; 


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1 (2) stresses that United States policy should re2 main that Crimea is part of Ukraine and should re3 ject attempts to change the status, demographics, or 

4 political nature of Crimea; 

5 (3) reaffirms respect for the values of democ6 racy, human rights, and rule of law that all individ7 uals in Crimea deserve, including non-Russian ethnic 

8 groups and religious minorities; 

9 (4) condemns all human rights violations 

10 against individuals in Crimea, and underscores the 

11 culpability of the Russian Federation for such viola12 tions while this territory is under illegal Russian oc13 cupation; 

14 (5) calls on the Government of the Russian 

15 Federation to immediately respect the political and 

16 human rights of individuals in Crimea, including 

17 those detained in Crimea or who have been trans18 ferred from Crimea to the territory of Russia, and 

19 to cease efforts to restrict dissent or change the de20 mographic or political nature of the peninsula; 

21 (6) urges the United States Government, in co22 ordination with the European Union, NATO, and 

23 members of the international community, to 

24 prioritize efforts to prevent the further consolidation 

25 of illegal occupying powers in Crimea, reaffirm uniVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Jul 10, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR571.IS SR571

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1 fied opposition to the actions of the Russian Federa2 tion in Crimea, and secure the human rights of indi3 viduals there; 

4 (7) welcomes the sanctions that have been im5 posed and maintained to date by the United States 

6 and European Union against individuals engaged in 

7 furthering the illegal occupation of Crimea by the 

8 Russian Federation; 

9 (8) calls on the United States Government to 

10 continue to use relevant sanctions authorities codi11 fied in the Countering America’s Adversaries 

12 Through Sanctions Act of 2017 (Public Law 115– 

13 144), as well as under the Global Magnitsky Human 

14 Rights Accountability Act (subtitle F of title XII of 

15 Public Law 114–328; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note), to ad16 dress and deter those engaged in furthering the ille17 gal occupation of Crimea and human rights abuses 

18 and corruption committed in Crimea or against indi19 viduals from Crimea; 

20 (9) welcomes further efforts by the United 

21 States Government to encourage the European 

22 Union to impose additional Crimea-related sanctions; 

23 and 

24 (10) calls upon the United States Government 

25 to declare it the foreign policy of the United States 


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1 to never recognize the illegal annexation of Crimea 

2 by the Russian Federation, similar to the 1940 

3 Welles Declaration in which the United States re4 fused to recognized the Soviet annexation of the Bal5 tic States. 

Æ 


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