IV 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 35

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 23, 2005

Referred to the Committee on International Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Whereas the incorporation in 1940 of the Baltic countries of 

Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union was 

an act of aggression carried out against the will of sovereign people; 

Whereas the United States was steadfast in its policy of not 

recognizing the illegal Soviet annexation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania; 

Whereas the Russian Federation is the successor state to the 

Soviet Union; 

Whereas the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939, including its 

secret protocols, between Nazi Germany and the Soviet 

Union provided the Soviet Union with the opportunity to 

occupy and annex Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania; 

Whereas the occupation brought countless suffering to the 

Baltic peoples through terror, killings, and deportations 

to Siberian concentration camps; 
2

SCON 35 RFH 

Whereas the peoples of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania bravely resisted Soviet aggression and occupation; 

Whereas the Government of Germany renounced its participation in the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939 and publicly apologized for the destruction and terror that Nazi 

Germany unleashed on the world; 

Whereas in 1989, the Congress of Peoples’ Deputies of the 

Soviet Union denounced the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 

1939 and its secret protocols; 

Whereas President Putin recently confirmed that the statement of the Congress of Peoples’ Deputies remains the 

view of the Russian Federation; 

Whereas the illegal occupation and annexation of the Baltic 

countries by the Soviet Union remains unacknowledged 

by the Russian Federation; 

Whereas a declaration of acknowledgment of the illegal occupation and annexation by the Russian Federation would 

lead to improved relations between the people of Estonia, 

Latvia, and Lithuania and the people of Russia, would 

form the basis for improved relations between the governments of the countries, and strengthen stability in the region; 

Whereas the Russian Federation is to be commended for beginning to acknowledge grievous and regrettable incidents 

in their history, such as admitting complicity in the massacre of Polish soldiers in the Katyn Forest in 1940; 

Whereas the truth is a powerful weapon for healing, forgiving, and reconciliation, but its absence breeds distrust, 

fear, and hostility; and 
3

SCON 35 RFH 

Whereas countries that cannot clearly admit their historical 

mistakes and make peace with their pasts cannot successfully build their futures: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 

2 concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that the Gov3 ernment of the Russian Federation should issue a clear 

4 and unambiguous statement of admission and condemna5 tion of the illegal occupation and annexation by the Soviet 

6 Union from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries of Esto7 nia, Latvia, and Lithuania, the consequence of which will 

8 be a significant increase in good will among the affected 

9 peoples and enhanced regional stability. 

Passed the Senate May 19, 2005. 

Attest: EMILY J. REYNOLDS, 

Secretary.