IV
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION H. RES. 16
Recognizing Russian actions in Ukraine as a genocide.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY6, 2025
Mr. C
OHEN(for himself, Mr. WILSONof South Carolina, Mr. BOYLEof Penn-
sylvania, Mr. F
ITZPATRICK, Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. QUIGLEY,
Mr. L
AWLER, Mr. COSTA, Ms. NORTON, Mrs. TORRESof California, Mr.
V
EASEY, Mr. KEATING, and Ms. KAPTUR) submitted the following resolu-
tion; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
RESOLUTION
Recognizing Russian actions in Ukraine as a genocide.
Whereas the Russian Federation’s illegal, premeditated,
unprovoked, and brutal war against Ukraine includes ex-
tensive, systematic, and flagrant atrocities against the
people of Ukraine;
Whereas Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (hereinafter the
‘‘Genocide Convention’’), approved and opened for signa-
ture in 1948 and entered into force in 1951, defines
genocide as ‘‘any of the following acts committed with in-
tent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical,
racial or religious group, as such: (a) Killing members of
the group; (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to
members of the group; (c) Deliberately inflicting on the
VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Jan 07, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR16.IH HR16
kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 2
•HRES 16 IH
group conditions of life calculated to bring about its
physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) Imposing
measures intended to prevent births within the group; (e)
Forcibly transferring children of the group to another
group’’;
Whereas substantial and significant evidence documenting
widespread, systematic actions against the Ukrainian
people committed by Russian Forces under the direction
of Russian Federation political leadership meets one or
more of the criteria under Article II of the Genocide Con-
vention, including—
(1) killing members of the Ukrainian people in mass
atrocities through deliberate and regularized murders of
fleeing civilians and civilians in passing as well as pur-
poseful targeting of homes, schools, hospitals, shelters,
and other residential and civilian areas;
(2) causing serious bodily or mental harm to the
Ukrainian people by launching indiscriminate attacks
against civilians and civilian areas, conducting willful
strikes on humanitarian evacuation corridors, and em-
ploying widespread and systematic sexual violence against
Ukrainian civilians, including women, children, and men;
(3) deliberately inflicting upon the Ukrainian people
conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical
destruction in whole or in part, including displacement
due to annihilated villages, towns, and cities left devoid
of food, water, shelter, electricity, and other basic neces-
sities, starvation caused by the destruction of farmlands
and agricultural equipment, the placing of Russian land-
mines across thousands of acres of useable fields, and
blocking the delivery of humanitarian food aid;
(4) imposing measures intended to prevent births
among the Ukrainian people, demonstrated by the Rus-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Jan 07, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR16.IH HR16
kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 3
•HRES 16 IH
sian military’s expansive and direct targeting of mater-
nity hospitals and other medical facilities and systematic
attacks against residential and civilian areas as well as
humanitarian corridors intended to deprive Ukrainians of
safe havens within their own country and the material
conditions conducive to childrearing; and
(5) forcibly mass transferring millions of Ukrainian
civilians, hundreds of thousands of whom are children, to
Russia or Russian Federation-controlled territories;
Whereas the Russian Federation’s State-level intent in favor
of these heinous crimes against humanity has been dem-
onstrated through frequent pronouncements and other
forms of official communication denying Ukrainian na-
tionhood and sovereignty, including President Putin’s
ahistorical claims that Ukraine is part of a ‘‘single
whole’’ Russian nation with ‘‘no historical basis’’ for
being an independent country;
Whereas some Russian soldiers and brigades accused of com-
mitting war crimes in Bucha and elsewhere were re-
warded with medals by President Putin;
Whereas the Russian State-owned media outlet RIA Novosti’s
published the article ‘‘What Should Russia do with
Ukraine’’ which outlines ‘‘de-Nazification’’ as meaning
‘‘de-Ukrainianization’’ or the destruction of Ukraine;
Whereas Article I of the Genocide Convention confirms ‘‘that
genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time
of war, is a crime under international law which they un-
dertake to prevent and to punish’’; and
Whereas additional documentation and analysis of atrocities
committed by the Russian Federation in Ukraine may be
needed to punish those responsible, the substantial and
VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Jan 07, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR16.IH HR16
kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 4
•HRES 16 IH
significant documentation already undertaken and com-
bined with statements showing intent, compel urgent ac-
tion to prevent further acts of genocide: Now, therefore,
be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1
(1) condemns the Russian Federation for com-2
mitting acts of genocide against the Ukrainian peo-3
ple; 4
(2) calls on the United States, in cooperation 5
with North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Euro-6
pean Union allies, to undertake measures to support 7
the Ukrainian Government to prevent further acts of 8
Russian genocide against the Ukrainian people; and 9
(3) supports tribunals and international crimi-10
nal investigations to hold Russian political leaders 11
and military personnel to account for a war of ag-12
gression, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and 13
genocide. 14
Æ
VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Jan 07, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR16.IH HR16
kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB