Condemning Members of the Russian Duma and Federation Council who voted to recognize the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk in flagrant violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, international law, and Russia's commitments under the 2015 Minsk agreement.

Whereas, since Russia’s illegal invasion and subsequent annexation of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, Russia has engineered the rise of new separatist movements in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukraine, collectively known as the Donbas; Whereas the 2014 and 2015 Minsk agreements, designed to end the war in the Donbas region, established a cease-fire and provided a special status Whereas, on February 15, 2022, Russia’s State Duma, the lower house of parliament, voted 351 to 16 to adopt a resolution calling for the diplomatic recognition of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR), self-proclaimed breakaway regions in the Donbas; Whereas Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued baseless claims of genocide Whereas, on February 21, 2022, President Putin signed decrees recognizing the DPR and LPR and ordered the Russian military to conduct peacekeeping operations Whereas, on February 22, 2022, the Duma voted 398 to 0 and the Federation Council, Russia’s upper house of parliament, voted 154 to 0 to recognize the DPR and LPR and grant President Putin consent to use military force in the Donbas region; and Whereas, on the same day, Russian tanks and troops moved into Donetsk and Luhansk in what the White House described as an invasion That the House of Representatives— (1) condemns Members of the Russian Duma and Federation Council who voted to recognize the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk in flagrant violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, international law, and Russia’s commitments under the 2015 Minsk agreement; (2) commends the European Union’s decision to sanction 351 Russian legislators who appealed to President Putin to recognize the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR); (3) calls on the Biden administration to sanction Members of the State Duma and Federation Council who voted to recognize the DPR and LPR, as well as close associates or family members of those officials, pursuant to Executive Orders 13660 and 13661, which authorize sanctions against those who threaten [Ukraine’s] security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity official[s] of the Government of the Russian Federation (4) stands firmly and decisively in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and against the Putin regime’s military aggression and blatant violations of international laws and norms.

Summary: This resolution condemns members of the Russian Duma and Federation Council who voted to recognize the independence of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) in flagrant violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, international law, and Russia's commitments under the 2015 Minsk agreement. The resolution commends the European Union's decision to sanction 351 Russian legislators who appealed to President Putin to recognize the independence of the DPR and the LPR. Finally, the resolution calls on the Biden administration to sanction members of the State Duma and Federation Council who voted to recognize the independence of the DPR and the LPR, as well as close associates or family members of those officials, pursuant to Executive Orders 13660 and 13661, which authorize sanctions against those who threaten Ukraine's sovereignty and are officials of the Russian Federation.