III 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 546 

Expressing the sense of the Senate condemning the Russian Federation, 

President Vladimir Putin, members of the Russian Security Council, 

the Russian Armed Forces, and Russian military commanders for committing atrocities, including alleged war crimes, against the people of 

Ukraine and others. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 15, 2022 

Mr. GRAHAM (for himself, Mr. COONS, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. KING, Ms. ERNST, 

Mr. TILLIS, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. CORNYN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. MORAN, 

Mr. RUBIO, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. BOOKER, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. WICKER, 

Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. KELLY, Mrs. SHAHEEN, and Mr. DURBIN) submitted the following resolution; which was 

considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate condemning the Russian 

Federation, President Vladimir Putin, members of the 

Russian Security Council, the Russian Armed Forces, 

and Russian military commanders for committing atrocities, including alleged war crimes, against the people 

of Ukraine and others. 

Whereas the United States of America is a beacon for the 

values of freedom, democracy, and human rights across 

the globe; 


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•SRES 546 ATS 

Whereas there are several universal declarations and treaties 

promoting human rights, laws of war, and upholding the 

dignity of individuals; 

Whereas the United Nations Charter Preamble states that 

member nations ‘‘reaffirm faith in fundamental human 

rights [and] in the dignity and worth of the human person’’; 

Whereas the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Preamble states that ‘‘Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in cooperation with the United Nations, 

the promotion of universal respect for and observance of 

human rights and fundamental freedoms’’; 

Whereas the Russian Federation joined as an original member of the United Nations as the former Union of Soviet 

Socialists Republics on October 24, 1945, and as such 

has a duty to abide by the conditions of the United Nations Charter and pledges reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; 

Whereas the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an international tribunal that seeks to uphold the rule of law, especially in areas where no rule of law exists, by investigating and trying individuals charged ‘‘with the gravest 

crimes of concern to the international community: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime 

of aggression’’; 

Whereas grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Conventions constitute war crimes, including ‘‘wil[l]ful killing, torture or 

inhuman treatment, including biological experiments, 

wil[l]fully causing great suffering or serious injury to 

body or health . . . and extensive destruction and approVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:37 Mar 16, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR546.ATS SR546

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•SRES 546 ATS 

priation of property, not justified by military necessity 

and carried out unlawfully and wantonly’’; 

Whereas other serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in international armed conflict can constitute war 

crimes, which can include intentionally directing attacks 

against the civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities and intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, that 

is, objects which are not military objectives; 

Whereas President Vladimir Putin, members of the Russian 

Security Council, and President Putin’s military commanders have severely undermined the international rule 

of law through their various actions; 

Whereas, prior to the most recent invasion of Ukraine in 

February 2022, President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federation has a long history of committing acts of 

aggression, human rights violations, and acts that constitute war crimes within the Russian Federation and 

around the globe, including in Chechnya, Georgia, 

Ukraine, and Syria; 

Whereas, beginning in 1999, the Russian Federation engaged 

in the indiscriminate use of force against the people of 

Chechnya, including the use of cluster munitions against 

civilians, resulting in 50,000 Chechens, mostly civilians, 

dead or missing; 

Whereas, during the Russian Federation’s invasion of Georgia in 2008, Russian Armed Forces engaged with cluster 

munitions in indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks 

that resulted in the death of civilians; 

Whereas, since 2014, President Vladimir Putin has violated 

the sovereignty of Ukraine and used military force to 


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•SRES 546 ATS 

seize control and unlawfully occupy Crimea, and installed 

Russian separatist-backed forces in eastern Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians 

since 2014; 

Whereas the Russian military was deemed responsible for 

shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern 

Ukraine on July 17, 2014, which resulted in the death 

of 298 civilians; 

Whereas rebel forces supported by the Russian Federation 

were deemed responsible for a missile attack on January 

24, 2015, in Mariupol, Ukraine that indiscriminately 

killed and injured civilians, resulting in the death of at 

least 30 and injuring many more; 

Whereas, in 2016 and 2017, Russian aircraft deployed 

‘‘bunker-busting’’ and incendiary bombs capable of destroying military installations on civilian structures in 

Aleppo, Syria, resulting in the death of hundreds of civilians; 

Whereas President Vladimir Putin is complicit in war crimes 

and human rights violations in Syria through his continuing political, financial, and military support for President Bashar al-Assad; 

Whereas intelligence assessments have concluded Vladimir 

Putin and his regime have destroyed the rule of law in 

Russia and engaged in countless atrocities, including ordering the poisoning of Alexei Navalny, the poisoning of 

Sergei and Yulia Skripal, and the false imprisonment and 

torture ultimately leading to the death of Sergei 

Magnitsky; 


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Whereas President Vladimir Putin, in February 2022, initiated a premeditated, unprovoked, unjustified, and unlawful war against the sovereign nation of Ukraine; 

Whereas, since February 24, 2022, President Vladimir Putin 

and Russian Federation forces reportedly killed more 

than 500 civilians, to include children, while invading 

Ukrainian urban centers, causing chaos and fear among 

Ukrainian citizens; 

Whereas, on February 28, 2022, the Ukrainian Ambassador 

to the United States, Oksana Markarova, claimed President Vladimir Putin ordered the deployment of 

thermobaric weapons and cluster munitions to be used in 

the northeastern towns of Okhtyrka and Karkhiv, in populated, urban areas; 

Whereas Ukraine has twice submitted to the jurisdiction of 

the ICC for the purposes of investigating alleged war 

crimes and crimes against humanity committed within its 

territory related to the Russian occupation of Ukraine; 

Whereas Lithuania and Canada, members to the authorizing 

treaty of the ICC, have called on the ICC to open an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against 

humanity committed by Russia; 

Whereas, on February 28, 2022, the Prosecutor of the ICC, 

Karim A.A. Khan QC stated that the ICC would open a 

third investigation against Russia for alleged war crimes 

and crimes against humanity committed during the Russian invasion into Ukraine, which began on February 24, 

2022; 

Whereas Ukraine has also filed a claim in the International 

Court of Justice (ICJ) instituting proceedings against the 


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Russian Federation related to genocide under the Genocide Convention; and 

Whereas the United States Government should use its voice, 

vote, and influence to pursue war crimes and crimes 

against humanity allegations against Vladimir Putin and 

his military commanders in international institutions of 

which it is a member and encourage other allies and 

partners to express the same: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, 

2 SECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE. 

3 The Senate— 

4 (1) strongly condemns the ongoing violence, in5 cluding war crimes, crimes against humanity, and 

6 systematic human rights abuses being carried out by 

7 the Russian Armed Forces and their proxies and 

8 President Putin’s military commanders, at the direc9 tion of President Vladimir Putin; 

10 (2) encourages member states to petition the 

11 ICC or other appropriate international tribunal to 

12 take any appropriate steps to investigate war crimes 

13 and crimes against humanity committed by the Rus14 sian Armed Forces and their proxies and President 

15 Putin’s military commanders, at the direction of 

16 President Vladimir Putin; 

17 (3) supports any investigation into war crimes, 

18 crimes against humanity, and systematic human 

19 rights abuses levied by President Vladimir Putin, the 


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1 Russian Security Council, the Russian Armed 

2 Forces and their proxies, and President Putin’s mili3 tary commanders; 

4 (4) encourages the United States Government 

5 and partner nations to use their voice, vote, and in6 fluence in international institutions in which they 

7 are members to hold President Vladimir Putin, the 

8 Russian Security Council, the Russian Armed 

9 Forces and their proxies, and President Putin’s mili10 tary commanders accountable for their sponsorship 

11 of ongoing violence, including war crimes, crimes 

12 against humanity, and systematic human rights 

13 abuses; and 

14 (5) stands with the people of Ukraine who have 

15 been affected by the brutality of the Putin regime. 

16 SEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

17 Nothing in this resolution may be construed as— 

18 (1) a declaration of war or an authorization for 

19 the use of military force against the Russian Fed20 eration; or 

21 (2) authorization for the introduction of the 

22 United States Armed Forces into Ukraine. 

Æ 


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