A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate on the March 31, 2019, presidential election in Ukraine.

III 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 109 Expressing the sense of the Senate on the March 31, 2019, presidential election in Ukraine. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 14, 2019 Mr. MERKLEY (for himself and Mr. DURBIN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the Senate on the March 31, 2019, presidential election in Ukraine. Whereas the Senate agrees with Senate Resolution 78, 115th Congress, introduced by Senators Menendez and Gra- ham, which expressed the sense of the Senate recognizing 3 years of Russian military aggression in Ukraine; Whereas the Senate concurs with Senate Resolution 27, 116th Congress, introduced by Senators Johnson and Durbin, which calls for a prompt multinational freedom of navigation operation in the Black Sea and urges the cancellation of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline; Whereas the Senate endorses H.R. 596, 116th Congress, in- troduced by Representatives Connolly and Chabot, which affirms that it is the policy of the United States not to recognize the de jure or de facto sovereignty of the Rus- VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR109.IS SR109 lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS 2 •SRES 109 IS sian Federation over Crimea, its airspace, or its terri- torial waters; Whereas the Senate reaffirms the importance of the Ukraine Freedom Support Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–272; 128 Stat. 2952), which authorized increased security and economic assistance for Ukraine; Whereas the Senate welcomes resolutions of Congress, such as House Resolution 202, 115th Congress, sponsored by Representative Delaney, which reaffirmed the commit- ment of the United States to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Whereas the Senate notes the upcoming March 31, 2019, presidential election in Ukraine and the importance of a free and fair election to sustaining the principles and dreams of the 2014 Maidan Revolution; Whereas the Senate expresses concern that the Government of the Russian Federation will continue to interfere in the election process and voting in the March 31, 2019, presidential election in Ukraine; and Whereas the Senate agrees with former United States Am- bassador to the Russian Federation Michael McFaul that ‘‘Russian President Vladimir Putin is waging a global ideological war against Western liberal, democratic val- ues. It has been underway for many years, and it extends from his own immediate neighborhood to Western Europe and, of course, the United States, where he intervened in the U.S. presidential election in 2016. The front line of this ideological war between Putinism and democracy, however, remains Ukraine.’’: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that— 1 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR109.IS SR109 lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS 3 •SRES 109 IS (1) the United States Government does not pre- 1 fer any particular candidate in the March 31, 2019, 2 presidential election in Ukraine and seeks only a 3 transparent and democratic election that reflects the 4 will of the people of Ukraine; 5 (2) the United States Government will continue 6 to support democracy and good governance in 7 Ukraine, including anti-corruption initiatives, an 8 independent media, and efforts to strengthen the 9 rule of law, to support the ideals of the revolution 10 of dignity of Ukraine; 11 (3) the United States should continue to work 12 with allies to provide additional capacity building 13 and technical support in order to deter Russian ef- 14 forts to disrupt voting or undermine the legitimacy 15 of the results of the presidential election in Ukraine; 16 and 17 (4) not later than 90 days after the date on 18 which this resolution is agreed to, the President 19 should provide a briefing to Congress— 20 (A) assessing the scope and scale of Rus- 21 sian interference in the presidential campaign 22 in Ukraine and vote tabulation on election day; 23 and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR109.IS SR109 lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS 4 •SRES 109 IS (B) assessing the future course of United 1 States-Ukrainian relations under whichever can- 2 didate is declared the winner of the presidential 3 election. 4 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:17 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR109.IS SR109 lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS