Date: 2014-03-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of H.R. 4278. the "Ukraine Support Act." I support this legislation because I stand in solidarity with the freedom loving people of Ukraine. who are under siege from Russian encroachment. Mr. Speaker. H.R. 4278 authorizes $70 million in aid to Ukraine. including $50 million for democracy and civil society efforts. The bill also codifies and expands sanctions imposed this month by the Obama Administration against certain Russian officials and calls on President Obama to sanction Russian officials. corporations and those engaged in the Russian arms sector who have undermined the Ukrainian government or committed human rights abuses. The President is also authorized to examine whether Russia has violated a 1988 arms treaty and permits him to freeze assets and deny visas. Specifically. the bill authorizes $50 million for the President to provide assistance to support democracy and strengthen civil society in Ukraine. This assistance is to be used to improve transparency. rule of law. and anticorruption efforts. strengthen political organizations. and protect independent media as Ukraine prepares for free and fair elections in May. Additionally. up to $10 million is authorized for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Voice of America to increase broadcasts into eastern Ukraine (including Crimea). Moldova and other nearby ethnic Russian communities. The broadcasts should. in particular. counter misinformation from Russiasupported news outlets. In addition to this direct aid. the bill also supports the people of Ukraine in the following ways: 1. Encourages the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to prioritize investments in Ukraine. 2. Authorizes $8 million to help Ukraine develop an independent judiciary and eliminate human rights abuses by law enforcement authorities. 3. Encourages increased U.S. security cooperation among NATO states in Central and Eastern Europe through military training. exercises and the exchange of defense articles. and directs the Secretary of State to report to Congress within 30 days of enactment with a review of U.S. security assistance to that country. 4. Expresses the sense of Congress that the administration should provide expedited assistance to the Ukrainian government to identify and recover assets stolen from the government or linked to corruption by former officials. including former President Viktor Yanukovych. and 5. Offsets the cost of assistance to Ukraine by reducing the $1.5 billion authorized for Pakistan in the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 by $70 million. That is why I strongly support the codification of three Presidential executive orders issued in March sanctioning individuals involved in the violence in Ukraine or who undermine the independence. sovereignty. or territorial or economic integrity of Ukraine. Such sanctions could include the seizure of financial assets. the denial of visas. and other penalties. The sanctions could be ended if the President certifies to Congress that Ukrainian sovereignty. independence or territorial integrity is not being violated by Russia or any other state actor. or after Jan. 1. 2020. if the President certifies that their termination is in the national security interest of the United States. Finally. the bill requires the President. within 30 days of enactment and within 180 days thereafter for at least two years. to report to Congress on senior Russian political figures who are engaged in such activity. It also requires the President. along identical timelines. to report to Congress on foreign financial institutions (especially Russian banks) to determine whether they are involved in the confiscation of Ukrainian assets. money laundering. terrorist or proliferation financing. or actively helping to skirt sanctions. or helping to annex Crimea. The bill expresses the sense of Congress that the President should expand the list of Russian officialscurrently at 18sanctioned for gross human rights violations under the Magnitsky Act of 2012. Mr. Speaker. it is right that the civilized world. led by the United States. opposes aggression and the violation of territorial sovereignty by the Putin regime. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting to pass H.R. 4278.