I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3841 

To provide for the imposition of sanctions against 24 senior officials of 

the Border Service and Federal Security Service of Russia until the 

release of certain seized Ukrainian ships and crewmembers, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 18, 2019 

Ms. KAPTUR (for herself, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. QUIGLEY, and Mr. HARRIS) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for the imposition of sanctions against 24 senior 

officials of the Border Service and Federal Security Service of Russia until the release of certain seized Ukrainian 

ships and crewmembers, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stopping Aggressive 

5 Incursions on Liberty by Ordering Russian Sanctions 

6 Act’’ or the ‘‘SAILORS Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) On November 25, 2018, the Border Service 

4 of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Fed5 eration fired on and seized three Ukrainian naval 

6 ships sailing through the Kerch Strait. 

7 (2) The Russian Federal Security Service also 

8 seized 24 Ukrainian crew members of those ships, 

9 and continue to illegally detain them in Russia. 

10 (3) The Russian Government continues to 

11 refuse to release and return these 24 sailors and 3 

12 ships. 

13 (4) The International Tribunal for the Law of 

14 the Sea has ordered the release of the sailors and 

15 the ships seized by the Border Service. 

16 (5) The seizure of these ships and crewmembers 

17 is yet another escalation of Russia’s illegal and ag18 gressive assault on Ukrainian territorial and naval 

19 sovereignty. 

20 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

21 Congress— 

22 (1) harshly condemns this attack on Ukraine, 

23 its ships, and its citizens; 

24 (2) demands the immediate release and return 

25 of these three Ukrainian ships and crewmembers; 


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1 (3) welcomes the actions of the Secretary of the 

2 Treasury to implement sanctions on senior border 

3 officials of the Russian Federal Security Service in4 volved in the Kerch Strait attach on March 15, 

5 2019; 

6 (4) urges the President to continue to prioritize 

7 the return of these ships and crewmembers, includ8 ing through the implementation of additional sanc9 tions on Russian financial institutions, responsible 

10 parties in the Border Service and Federal Security 

11 Service, and parties associated with the Nord 

12 Stream 2 project, in order to increase the costs of 

13 such aggression; and 

14 (5) reaffirms its resolute support for the 

15 Ukrainian people and their territorial and maritime 

16 sovereignty. 

17 SEC. 4. SANCTIONS IMPOSED. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall im20 pose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect 

21 to 24 individuals who are senior officers of the Border 

22 Service or the Federal Security Service of Russia, with 

23 respect to the families of such senior officers, and with 

24 respect to any person the President determines is a close 

25 associate of any such senior officer. 


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1 (b) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions de2 scribed in this subsection are the following: 

3 (1) ASSET BLOCKING.—The exercise of all pow4 ers granted to the President by the International 

5 Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 

6 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit 

7 all transactions in all property and interests in prop8 erty of a person subject to sanctions imposed pursu9 ant to subsection (a) if such property and interests 

10 in property are in the United States, come within 

11 the United States, or are or come within the posses12 sion or control of a United States person. 

13 (2) EXCLUSION FROM THE UNITED STATES.— 

14 In the case of an individual subject to sanctions im15 posed pursuant to subsection (a), denial of a visa to, 

16 and exclusion from the United States of, such indi17 vidual, and revocation, in accordance with section 

18 221(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

19 U.S.C. 1201(i)), of any visa or other documentation 

20 of the individual. 

21 (c) TERMINATION; PENALTIES.— 

22 (1) TERMINATION.—The authority to impose or 

23 maintain sanctions pursuant to this section shall ter24 minate on the date on which the President certifies 

25 to the appropriate congressional committees that the 


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1 Ukranian ships and crewmembers described in sec2 tion 2 of this Act have been released back to 

3 Ukraine. 

4 (2) PENALTIES.—Any person that violates, at5 tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 

6 violation of any sanction imposed pursuant to this 

7 section or any regulation, license, or order issued to 

8 carry out this section shall be subject to the pen9 alties set forth in subsections (b) and (c) of section 

10 206 of the International Emergency Economic Pow11 ers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the same extent as a 

12 person that commits an unlawful act described in 

13 subsection (a) of that section. 

14 (d) EXCEPTION RELATING TO THE IMPORTATION OF

15 GOODS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The authority to impose 

17 sanctions under this section shall not include the au18 thority to impose sanctions on the importation of 

19 goods. 

20 (2) GOOD DEFINED.—In this subsection, the 

21 term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or manmade 

22 substance, material, supply or manufactured prod23 uct, including inspection and test equipment, and ex24 cluding technical data. 


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1 (e) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH UNITED NATIONS

2 HEADQUARTERS AGREEMENT.—Sanctions under this sec3 tion shall not apply to an individual if admitting the indi4 vidual into the United States is necessary to permit the 

5 United States to comply with the Agreement regarding the 

6 Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Suc7 cess June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 

8 1947, between the United Nations and the United States, 

9 or other applicable international obligations. 

Æ 


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