IV 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1166 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding provocative 
and dangerous statements and actions taken by the Government of 
the Russian Federation that undermine the territorial integrity of the 
Republic of Georgia. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 29, 2008 
Mr. WEXLER (for himself, Mr. BERMAN, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Mr. SHUSTER, Ms. 
ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. CHABOT, Mr. KIND, Mr. ACKERMAN, 
Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. 
HINCHEY, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, 
Mr. MCCOTTER, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. AN-
DREWS, Mr. FORTUN˜O, Mr. SESTAK, Mr. SIRES, Mr. ROTHMAN, and Mr. 
DREIER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regard-
ing provocative and dangerous statements and actions 
taken by the Government of the Russian Federation that 
undermine the territorial integrity of the Republic of 
Georgia. 
Whereas, since 1993, the territorial integrity of the Republic 
of Georgia has been reaffirmed by the international com-
munity, international law, and 32 United Nations Secu-
rity Council resolutions; 
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•HRES 1166 IH 
Whereas the Government of the Republic of Georgia has pur-
sued in good faith a peaceful resolution of territorial con-
flicts in the regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia since 
the end of hostilities in 1993; 
Whereas, on March 28, 2008, and on April 12, 2008, Geor-
gian President Mikheil Saakashvili introduced new and 
far-reaching peace proposals to resolve the territorial con-
flict in Abkhazia, including international guarantees of 
Abkhaz autonomy, broad political representation for the 
Abkhaz, the right to veto legislation related to the con-
stitutional status of Abkhazia as well as its language and 
culture, the establishment of a joint Free Economic Zone 
in the Gali region, and an offer for more active involve-
ment by the international community and Russian Fed-
eration to help forge a peaceful resolution to the conflict; 
Whereas, for several years, the Government of the Russian 
Federation has carried out policies that seek to under-
mine the sovereignty of the Republic of Georgia in 
Abkhazia and South Ossetia by awarding individuals in 
these regions with Russian citizenship, Russian pass-
ports, economic subsidies, and the right to vote in Rus-
sian elections; 
Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has also 
detailed Russian officials to take up positions in the sepa-
ratist governments, provided military equipment and sup-
port to separatists in the regions, and encouraged Rus-
sian volunteers to serve in militias in Abkhazia and South 
Ossetia; 
Whereas the announcement from the Government of the Rus-
sian Federation on April 16, 2008, that it will establish 
‘‘official ties’’ with the regions of Abkhazia and South 
Ossetia, recognize their official documents and legal enti-
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•HRES 1166 IH 
ties, and further involve itself in aspects of their govern-
ments appears to be a thinly veiled attempt at annex-
ation; 
Whereas, on April 20, 2008, tensions between the Russian 
Federation and the Republic of Georgia further escalated 
when an unarmed and unmanned Georgian reconnais-
sance aircraft was shot down over Georgian territory, re-
portedly by a Russian MIG–29 fighter jet; 
Whereas Russian officials have denied any involvement in the 
downing of the reconnaissance plane, claiming that 
Abkhazian rebels were responsible for the incident, al-
though neither Georgia nor Abkhazian defense forces 
have MIG–29 fighter jets; 
Whereas the statements and counter-productive actions of the 
Government of the Russian Federation in these regions 
has undermined the peace and security in Abkhazia and 
South Ossetia, the Republic of Georgia, and the 
Caucasus region as a whole; 
Whereas the consistent effort to undermine the sovereignty of 
a neighbor is incompatible with the role of the Russian 
Federation as one of the world’s leading powers and with 
its commitments to international peacekeeping made to 
the United Nations Security Council and the Organiza-
tion for Security and Cooperation in Europe; and 
Whereas, on April 23, 2008, Secretary of State Condoleezza 
Rice stated that ‘‘the United States is firmly committed 
to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia, 
that we support Georgia’s efforts to make certain that 
the people of Abkhazia and South Ossetia feel fully a 
part of Georgia, and that we are very concerned at the 
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•HRES 1166 IH 
recent move by the Russian Federation, the presidential 
decree that was issued’’: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) condemns recent decisions made by the 
Government of the Russian Federation to establish 
‘‘official ties’’ with the regions of Abkhazia and 
South Ossetia, a process that further impedes rec-
onciliation between those regions and the Govern-
ment of the Republic of Georgia and that violates 
the sovereignty of the Republic of Georgia and the 
commitments of the Government of the Russian 
Federation to international peacekeeping; 
(2) calls upon the Government of the Russian 
Federation to immediately revoke its decision to es-
tablish ‘‘official ties’’ with the regions of Abkhazia 
and South Ossetia; 
(3) strongly supports the restoration of the ter-
ritorial integrity of the Republic of Georgia and a 
peaceful resolution of the conflicts within Georgia’s 
internationally recognized borders; 
(4) encourages the Government of the Russian 
Federation to work with the Government of Georgia, 
the peoples of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and the 
international community to find a peaceful solution 
to the conflict; 
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•HRES 1166 IH 
(5) welcomes the measured reaction of the Gov-
ernment of the Republic of Georgia to recent devel-
opments and commends President Saakashvili’s lat-
est initiatives to resolve territorial conflicts through 
peaceful means; 
(6) calls on United Nations Secretary-General 
Ban Ki-moon to conduct an investigation of the 
April 20, 2008, incident in which an unarmed Geor-
gian reconnaissance aircraft was shot down by what 
reports indicate was a missile launched from a Rus-
sian MIG–29 fighter jet; 
(7) urges all parties to the conflicts in the Re-
public of Georgia and governments around the world 
to eschew rhetoric and actions that escalate tensions 
and undermine efforts to negotiate a peaceful settle-
ment to the conflicts; and 
(8) supports the declaration of the North Atlan-
tic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Bucharest Sum-
mit in Romania, which stated that the Republic of 
Georgia will become a member of NATO, reiterates 
its support for the commitment to further enlarge-
ment of NATO to include democratic governments 
that are able and willing to meet the responsibilities 
of membership, and urges the foreign ministers of 
NATO member states at their meeting in December 
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•HRES 1166 IH 
2008 to consider favorably the application of the 
Government of the Republic of Georgia’s Member-
ship Action Plan. 
Æ 
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