III 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 32 

Expressing the sense of Congress that the Government of the Russian Federation should issue a clear and unambiguous statement of admission and 

condemnation of the illegal occupation and annexation by the Soviet 

Union from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, 

and Lithuania. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 12, 2005 

Mr. SMITH (for himself, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and Mr. DURBIN) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 

Foreign Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of Congress that the Government of 

the Russian Federation should issue a clear and unambiguous statement of admission and condemnation of 

the illegal occupation and annexation by the Soviet Union 

from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries of Estonia, 

Latvia, and Lithuania. 

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; 
2 

•SCON 32 IS

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; 

Whereas the peoples of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania bravely resisted Soviet aggression first through armed resistance movements and later through political resistance 

movements; 

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 declared the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 

1939 void; 

Whereas the illegal occupation and annexation of the Baltic 

countries is one of the largest remaining unacknowledged 

incidents of oppression in Russian history; 

Whereas a declaration of acknowledgment of such incident 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 
3 

•SCON 32 IS

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 

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. 

Æ