I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5390 

To impose sanctions against persons who knowingly provide material support 

or resources to the Donbass People’s Militia or its affiliates, associated 

groups, or agents, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 1, 2014 

Ms. JACKSON LEE (for herself, Mr. LEWIS, and Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Financial Services, 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 impose sanctions against persons who knowingly provide 

material support or resources to the Donbass People’s 

Militia or its affiliates, associated groups, or agents, 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 ‘‘Donbass People’s Mili5 tia Terrorist Designation Act of 2014’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON DESIGNATION OF THE 

2 DONBASS PEOPLE’S MILITIA AS A FOREIGN 

3 TERRORIST ORGANIZATION. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) The Donbass People’s Militia (DPM) is an 

6 armed militia with allegiance to the Donestsk Peo7 ple’s Republic, a self-proclaimed State in Eastern 

8 Europe. 

9 (2) The organization consists of pro-Russian 

10 separatists that have taken up arms against the 

11 Ukrainian Armed Forces and the Government of 

12 Ukraine. 

13 (3) The Government of Ukraine has concluded 

14 that the DPM is responsible for shooting down Ma15 laysian Airlines Flight 17 on July 17, 2014. 

16 (4) The actions of the DPM resulted in the 

17 deaths of 283 passengers, 80 of them children, and 

18 15 crew members. 

19 (5) A United Nations report released May 15, 

20 2014, concluded that ‘‘in eastern Ukraine, freedom 

21 of expression is under particular attack through the 

22 harassment of, and threats to, journalists and media 

23 outlets and the increasing prevalence of hate speech 

24 is further fuelling tensions (Section I, Article 5, Sec25 tion vi).’’. 


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1 (6) According to the United Nations report, 

2 ‘‘Armed groups continue to illegally seize and occupy 

3 public and administrative buildings in cities and 

4 towns of the eastern regions and proclaim ‘self-de5 clared regions’ ’’. 

6 (7) Leaders and members of these armed 

7 groups commit an increasing number of human 

8 rights abuses, such as abductions, harassment, un9 lawful detentions, in particularly of journalists. This 

10 is leading to a breakdown in law and order and a 

11 climate of intimidation and harassment (Section I, 

12 Article 5, Section ii). 

13 (8) A report by the highly respected human 

14 rights advocacy organization, Human Rights Watch, 

15 found that ‘‘Anti-Kiev forces in eastern Ukraine are 

16 abducting, attacking, and harassing people they sus17 pect of supporting the Ukrainian government or con18 sider undesirable.’’. 

19 (9) Militants in the self-proclaimed Donestsk 

20 People’s Republic have taken hostages and have yet 

21 to release them. 

22 (10) According to a report by the United Na23 tions High Commissioner for Refugees, the actions 

24 of DPM and other militant groups have caused over 

25 100,000 Ukrainians to flee their country as refugees 


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1 and have also displaced approximately 54,000 citi2 zens internally. 

3 (b) CRITERIA.—Section 219(a)(1) of the Immigration 

4 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189(a)(1)) provides the 

5 3 criteria for the designation of an organization as a for6 eign terrorist organization: 

7 (1) The organization must be a foreign organi8 zation. 

9 (2) The organization must engage in terrorist 

10 activity, as defined in section 212(a)(3)(B) of the 

11 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

12 1182(a)(3)(B)), or terrorism, as defined in section 

13 140(d)(2) of the Foreign Relations Authorization 

14 Act, Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 (22 U.S.C. 

15 2656f(d)(2)), or retain the capability and intent to 

16 engage in terrorist activity or terrorism. 

17 (3) The organization’s terrorist activity or ter18 rorism must threaten the security of United States 

19 nationals or the national security (national defense, 

20 foreign relations, or the economic interests) of the 

21 United States. 

22 (c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con23 gress that— 

24 (1) the Donbass People’s Militia has met the 

25 criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organiVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:20 Aug 15, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5390.IH H5390

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1 zation under section 219 of the Immigration and 

2 Nationality Act (as described in subsection (b)); and 

3 (2) the Secretary of State, in consultation with 

4 the Attorney General and the Secretary of the 

5 Treasury, should exercise the Secretary of State’s 

6 statutory authority and designate the Donbass Peo7 ple’s Militia as a foreign terrorist organization. 

8 (d) REPORT.—If the Secretary of State does not des9 ignate the Donbass People’s Militia as a foreign terrorist 

10 organization under section 219 of the Immigration and 

11 Nationality Act within 60 days after the date of the enact12 ment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to 

13 Congress a report that contains the reasons therefor. 

14 SEC. 3. SANCTIONS AGAINST PERSONS WHO KNOWINGLY 

15 PROVIDE MATERIAL SUPPORT OR RE16 SOURCES TO THE DONBASS PEOPLE’S MILI17 TIA OR ITS AFFILIATES, ASSOCIATED 

18 GROUPS, OR AGENTS. 

19 (a) SANCTIONS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall subject 

21 to all available sanctions any person in the United 

22 States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United 

23 States who knowingly provides material support or 

24 resources to the Donbass People’s Militia or its af25 filiates, associated groups, or agents. 


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1 (2) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the term 

2 ‘‘material support or resources’’ has the meaning 

3 given such term in section 2339A(b)(1) of title 18, 

4 United States Code. 

5 (b) INADMISSIBILITY AND REMOVAL.— 

6 (1) INADMISSABILITY.—Notwithstanding any 

7 other provision of law, the Secretary of State may 

8 not issue any visa to, and the Secretary of Home9 land Security shall deny entry to the United States 

10 of, any member or representative of the Donbass 

11 People’s Militia or its affiliates, associated groups, 

12 or agents. 

13 (2) REMOVAL.—Any alien who is a member or 

14 representative of the Donbass People’s Militia or its 

15 affiliates, associated groups, or agents may be re16 moved from the United States in the same manner 

17 as an alien who is inadmissible under sections 

18 212(a)(3)(B)(i)(IV) or (V) of the Immigration and 

19 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(B)(i)(IV) or 

20 (V)). 

21 (c) FUNDS.—Any United States financial institution 

22 (as defined under section 5312 of title 31, United States 

23 Code) that knowingly has possession of or control over 

24 funds in which the Donbass People’s Militia or its affili25 ates, associated groups, or agents have an interest shall 


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1 retain possession of or control over the funds and report 

2 the funds to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the 

3 Department of the Treasury. 

Æ 


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