•HRES 1405 IH 
Whereas Latvia concluded several peace treaties and proto-
cols with the Soviet Union, including a peace treaty 
signed on August 11, 1920, under which the ‘‘Soviet 
Union unreservedly recognize[d] the independence and 
sovereignty of the Latvian State and forever renounce[d] 
all sovereign rights . . . over the Latvian people and terri-
tory’’; 
Whereas despite friendly and mutually productive relations 
between Latvia and the Soviet Union, on August 23, 
1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the 
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which contained a secret pro-
tocol assigning Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania to the So-
viet sphere of influence; 
Whereas under the cover of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, on 
June 17, 1940, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania were forc-
ibly incorporated into the Soviet Union in violation of 
preexisting peace treaties; 
Whereas the Soviet Union imposed upon the people of Latvia, 
Estonia, and Lithuania a communist political system that 
stifled civil dissent, free political expression, and basic 
human rights; 
Whereas the United States never recognized this illegal and 
forcible occupation, and successive American presidents 
maintained continuous diplomatic relations with these 
countries throughout the Soviet occupation, never accept-
ing them to be ‘‘Soviet Republics’’; 
Whereas during the 50 years of Soviet occupation of the Bal-
tic States, Congress strongly, consistently, and on a bi-
partisan basis supported a policy of legal nonrecognition; 
Whereas in 1953, the congressionally established Kersten 
Commission investigated the incorporation of Latvia, Es-
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•HRES 1405 IH 
tonia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union and deter-
mined that the Soviet Union had illegally and forcibly oc-
cupied and annexed the Baltic countries; 
Whereas in 1982, and for the next 9 years until the Baltic 
countries regained their independence, Congress annually 
adopted a Baltic Freedom Day resolution denouncing the 
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and appealing for the freedom 
of the Baltic countries; 
Whereas in 1991, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania regained 
their de facto independence and were quickly recognized 
by the United States and by almost every other country 
in the world, including the Soviet Union; 
Whereas in 1998, the United States and the 3 Baltic nations 
signed the United States-Baltic Charter of Partnership, 
an expression of the importance of the Baltic Sea region 
to United States interests; 
Whereas the 109th Congress resolved in S. Con. Res. 35 and 
H. Res. 28 that ‘‘it is the sense of Congress that the 
Government of the Russian Federation should issue a 
clear and unambiguous statement of admission and con-
demnation of the illegal occupation and annexation by the 
Soviet Union from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries 
of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the consequences of 
which will be a significant increase in good will among 
the affected people’’; 
Whereas Latvia has successfully developed as a free and 
democratic country, ensured the rule of law, and devel-
oped a free market economy; 
Whereas the Government of Latvia has constantly pursued a 
course of integration into the community of free and 
democratic nations, becoming a full and responsible mem-
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•HRES 1405 IH 
ber of the United Nations, the Organization for Security 
and Cooperation in Europe, the European Union, and the 
North Atlantic Treaty Organization; 
Whereas the people of Latvia cherish the principles of polit-
ical freedom, human rights, and independence; and 
Whereas Latvia is a strong and loyal ally of the United 
States, and the people of Latvia share common values 
with the people of the United States: Now, therefore, be 
it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) congratulates the people of Latvia on the 
occasion of the 90th anniversary of that country’s 
November 18, 1918, declaration of independence; 
(2) commends the Government of Latvia for its 
success in implementing political and economic re-
forms, for establishing political, religious, and eco-
nomic freedom, and for its strong commitment to 
human and civil rights; and 
(3) recognizes the common goals and shared 
values of the people of Latvia, Estonia, and Lith-
uania, the close and friendly relations and ties of the 
3 Baltic countries with one another, and their tragic 
history in the last century under the Nazi and Soviet 
occupations. 
Æ 
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