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Clarity of purpose needed with Russia |
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June 27, 2017 |
By U.S. Senator Mike Crapo
Over the course of the past three months, the
Senate Banking Committee, on which I serve as
Chairman, has held hearings assessing the
impacts of the current sanctions regime against
Russia.
The committee found that despite existing
sanctions, Russia remains a hostile,
recalcitrant power, and that in Russian
President Putin’s calculus, the costs of the
sanctions do not outweigh the benefits of
occupying Crimea and contributing to unrest in
Ukraine, continuing to support the Assad
regime’s assault on civilians in Syria, and
conducting cyber-attacks on people, companies,
and institutions.
Many on both sides of the aisle feel that the
United States needs to be much stronger in its
response.
The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed, by a
bipartisan vote of 97-2, legislation I
introduced that would expand and strengthen
sanctions on the Russian Federation to uphold
America’s respect for territorial integrity,
human rights and liberty.
The legislation was accepted as an amendment to
the underlying Iran sanctions bill, which
ultimately passed 98-2, and it represents a
bipartisan agreement among the leadership of the
two Senate committees of jurisdiction: Banking
Committee Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio)
and me as Chairman; and Senate Foreign Relations
Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tennessee) and
Ranking Member Ben Cardin (D-Maryland).
In a speech before the Senate, I had the
opportunity to detail the legislation that would
maintain and substantially expand sanctions
against the government of Russia in response to
the violation of the territorial integrity of
the Ukraine and Crimea, its brazen cyber-attacks
and interference in elections, and its
continuing aggression in Syria.
This legislation has four main objectives: it
would escalate and expand the current sanctions
regime against Russia; it would create new
sanctions against Russia; it would engage
Congress at a higher level than before by
ensuring that Congress is notified when the
President wants to impose certain sanctions or
when he lifts others; and it would increase the
U.S. Treasury Department’s ability to track
illicit finance, including illicit flows linked
to Russia.
The need for this legislation was underlined by
the fact that many Americans have deep concerns
about Russia’s behavior over the past few years.
Since coming to power, Putin has become
increasingly belligerent, nationalistic and
autocratic.
Currently, the United States has imposed
sanctions on Russia for: Russia’s invasion and
annexation of Crimea and its role in supporting
the separatist movements in eastern Ukraine;
Russia’s increasing cyber-attacks and cyber
espionage against the United States; Russia’s
support for the Assad Regime in Syria; and
Russia’s complicity for corruption.
Although this is not an exhaustive list, it
demonstrates the lengths to which Putin will go
to seize power and influence in the
international arena.
The times call for clarity of purpose, and a
correct amount of pressure. This step taken by
the Senate signals to the world the United
States’ unflagging commitment to the sanctity of
territorial integrity, human rights and good
governance. |
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