S UBSTITUTE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Ukraine has been a sovereign and independent nation-state since August of 1991, when the Ukrainian parliament declared independence from the former Soviet Union, a decision ratified in a national plebiscite in December of that year; and
WHEREAS, in November of 2013 thousands of people gathered in Kyiv, Ukrainejs capital and its largest city, to protest the actions and policies of their elected officials; and
WHEREAS, as demonstrations grew larger and more vocal, the government's response became increasingly harsh: acts of violence, ranging from abduction to beatings to use qf rooftop snipers, were perpetrated against unarmed demonstrators; and
WHEREAS, on February 22, 2014, the Ukrainian parliament voted to impeach then president Viktor F. Yanukovych and to set presidential elections for May 25 of this year. The next day the parliament selected an interim president, Olexander Turchynov, who ordered immediate formation of a national unity government in order to reduce tensions and to restore peac£ and order; and
WHEREAS, Within a week of the formation of the national unity government, Russian special operations troops moved with breathtaking speed to seize control of strategic locations across Crimea, where Russia has a major military base; and
WHEREAS, local authorities in Crimea, acting in violation of well-established principles of international law, moved to declare independence from Ukraine and to schedule a referendum on joining Russia; and
WHEREAS, Amid protests of voter fraud, a referendum was held in Crimea on Synday, March 16, 2014. Following the referendum, Mr. Putin quickly pressed ahead with the formalities of asserting Russian control over the Crimean peninsula; and
WHEREAS, Undeterred by the imposition of international sanctions or by the thrc at of diplomatic isolation from the West, on March 18,2014, Mr. Putin signed a treaty of accession with the region's new leaders to make Crimea and the City of Sevastopol regions ...
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