A group of Democratic and Republican senators on Thursday introduced a resolution recognizing Russia’s actions in Ukraine as genocide, a symbolic yet powerful signal of bipartisan support for the U.S. and international community to put an end to the violence and hold perpetrators responsible.
The resolution is led by Sens. Jim Risch (Idaho), the top Republican the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Ben Cardin (Md.), the second-ranking Democrat on the panel.
“There is no question that what Russia is doing in Ukraine is a genocide,” Risch said in a statement.
“If you could walk the streets of Kyiv, Irpin and Hostomel like I did last month, and listen to the stories of what the Russian soldiers have done, this is a genocide. The international community is documenting the many Russian abuses that constitute war crimes across Ukraine. It’s time the United States and the world recognize it as such.”
Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) are co-sponsors of the resolution.
The resolution condemns Russia for committing what it says are acts of genocide against the people of Ukraine and supports tribunals and international criminal investigations to hold Russian political leaders and military personnel accountable for a war of aggression, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
“Russia is trying to eviscerate not just the people and the buildings of Ukraine, but also they are trying to eliminate the Ukrainian language, Ukrainian history and Ukrainian culture,” Cardin said in a statement. “This is genocide. The world must recognize this fact and those responsible must be held accountable.”
The resolution further calls on the U.S., along with NATO and the European Union to “support the government of Ukraine to prevent further acts...