{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=9CD80923-FC0A-4A7B-ADCF-497C6E26F8BB", "Graham, Blumenthal Applaud Senate Passage of Russian State Sponsor of Terrorism Resolution", "2022-07-28", "2022", "2022-07", "Republican", "Senate", "SC", "Lindsey Graham", "G000359", "www.lgraham.senate.gov", "graham", "https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) today applauded the passage of a resolution they introduced affirming that the United States Senate views the actions of the government of the Russian Federation, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin, as sponsoring acts of terrorism.\n\nGRAHAM: \u201cTo the Biden Administration: You have the complete unanimous support of the United States Senate to label Russia a state sponsor of terrorism. Do it.\u201d\n\nBLUMENTHAL: \u201cThis designation is more than just symbolism \u2013 it has practical significance. I join in urging the Administration to heed this call\u2026on this point, Americans are united. We\u2019re backing Ukraine, we have your back. Your adversary is a state sponsor of terrorism. That\u2019s the message I hope will come from Congress, and I respectfully suggest to the Secretary of State that he should follow that lead and heed that call because this moment is one that uniquely calls for that kind of leadership.\u201d\n\nGRAHAM: \u201cThe sanctions have been effective, but we need to do more\u2026there\u2019s one thing we haven\u2019t done in Washington that can really matter: designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law. What does it mean? It means that doing business with Russia with that designation gets to be exceedingly hard \u2013 it has secondary effect sanctions, it would limit dual export items, and more importantly it would waive sovereign immunity when it came to suing Russia in U.S. courts. This designation would be a nightmare for Russia, it would be an encouraging event for the people of Ukraine, and more importantly, it would be a statement to the world that the United States, in a bipartisan fashion, when it comes to Russia, we are not forgiving and we are not forgetting.\u201d\n\nBLUMENTHAL: \u201cEvery time I think of this resolution, I have in my mind President Zelensky\u2019s face as we presented him with a framed copy of the resolution. It\u2019s difficult for me to overstate the sense of gratitude and even admiration as we presented him with this resolution which really marks a vote of support and confidence in the people of Ukraine as well as a condemnation of Vladimir Putin.\u201d\n\nGRAHAM: \u201cAll 100 members of the United States Senate are urging the Biden Administration to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism\u2026I didn\u2019t think there was an issue under the sun that could get 100 Senate votes, but we found it: Russia is a state sponsor of terrorism.\u201d\n\nBLUMENTHAL: \u201cThe designation of state sponsorship of terrorism puts Russia in a very small club \u2013 it consists of nations like Syria, Iran, and Cuba that are outside the bounds of civilized countries. They are pariahs. And that is exactly the designation that Russia deserves for what it has done in Ukraine as well as in other countries.\u201d\n\nGRAHAM: \u201cBy the end of 2022, I want Russia to be designated a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law. I want to pass another aid package to Ukraine to help them militarily and economically\u2026this designation is a very big deal. There are countries wondering where we are going to be\u2026I\u2019m hoping that Speaker Pelosi will put this on the suspension calendar. Let\u2019s have a vote as soon as possible and then we go to Secretary Blinken and say we\u2019ve got your back.\u201d\n\nBLUMENTHAL: \u201cThe people of Russia, if they really knew what was happening in Ukraine, would be repulsed. Vladimir Putin is hiding the truth from them. Vladimir Putin is the reason for this invasion. Vladimir Putin is the one who can end the brutal, barbaric atrocities that are occurring in Ukraine right now.\u201d\n\nThe Graham-Blumenthal resolution, which passed unanimously, makes clear the Senate:\n\nViews the actions of the Government of the Russian Federation, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin, as sponsoring acts of terrorism.\n\nCalls on the Secretary of State to designate the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.\n\nThe State Sponsor of Terrorism (SST) designation allows additional categories of sanctions to be placed on a country, including restrictions on U.S. foreign assistance, ban on defense exports and sales, certain controls over exports of dual use items, and financial and other restrictions. If designated, Russia would join a small list of other countries who are designated as SSTs: Cuba, Democratic People\u2019s Republic of Korea, Iran, and Syria.\n\nBoth Ukrainian President Zelensky and the parliament of Ukraine have appealed to Congress to encourage the Department of State to recognize the Russian Federation as an SST.\n\nWatch Full Press Conference Here\n\n#####\n\nThe full text of the resolution:\n\n117TH CONGRESS\n\n2D SESSION\n\nCalendar No. 433\n\nS. RES. 623\n\nCalling on the Secretary of State to designate the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism.\n\nIN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES\n\nMAY 9, 2022\n\nMr. GRAHAM (for himself, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, and Mr. PORTMAN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations\n\nJULY 11, 2022\n\nReported by Mr. MENENDEZ, with an amendment and an amendment to the preamble\n\nRESOLUTION\n\nCalling on the Secretary of State to designate the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism.\n\nWhereas, pursuant to section 1754(c) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (50 U.S.C. 4813(c)), section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2779A), and section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2371), the authority to designate a country as a state sponsor of terrorism rests with the Secretary of State;\n\nWhereas Cuba, the Democratic People\u2019s Republic of Korea, Iran, and Syria are designated as state sponsors of terrorism;\n\nWhereas, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin, the Government of the Russian Federation has and continues to promote acts of international terrorism against political opponents and nation states;\n\nWhereas, under the orders of President Putin, the Government of the Russian Federation engaged in a campaign of terror, utilizing brutal force targeting civilians during the Second Chechen War;\n\nWhereas actions by the Government of the Russian Federation against civilian centers, such as Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, left countless innocent men, women, and children dead or wounded;\n\nWhereas, since 2014, the Government of the Russian Federation has supported so-called separatists engaging in acts of violence against Ukrainian civilians in the Donbas region;\n\nWhereas, since the entry of the Russian Federation into the Syrian Civil War in 2015, the Russian Federation has targeted innocent civilians in Syria with attacks on civilian markets, medical facilities, and schools;\n\nWhereas the Government of the Russian Federation provides material support to Syria, a nation currently designated as a state sponsor of terrorism, that has been used to target the Syrian people;\n\nWhereas the Russian Federation spreads terror throughout the world through private military networks of mercenaries, such as the Wagner Group, in an effort to project power cheaply and deniably;\n\nWhereas the Wagner Group relies on the support of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Defense to advance the foreign policy objectives of the Russian Federation;\n\nWhereas the Department of the Treasury identifies the Wagner Group as \u2018\u2018a designated Russian Ministry of Defense proxy force\u2019\u2019 and states that \u2018\u2018Wagner\u2019s activities in other countries, including Ukraine, Syria, Sudan, and Libya, have generated insecurity and incited violence against innocent civilians\u2019\u2019;\n\nWhereas it was reported in February 2022 that more than 400 Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group were dis- patched to Kyiv with orders from the Kremlin to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and members of the Government of Ukraine;\n\nWhereas, on March 14, 2022, Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Zbigniew Rau stated that actions of the Government of the Russian Federation in Ukraine against innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure is \u2018\u2018state terrorism\u2019\u2019;\n\nWhereas, on March 17, 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky called for the world to acknowledge the Russian Federation as a terrorist state;\n\nWhereas the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has appealed to Congress to encourage the Department of State to recognize the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism noting that \u2018\u2018the Russian Federation has for years supported and financed terrorist regimes and terrorist organizations, including being the main supplier of weapons to the Assad regime in Syria and supporting terrorists in the Middle\n\nEast and Latin America, organizing acts of international terrorism, including the poisoning of the Skripal family in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ire- land, the downing of a civilian Malaysian airliner and other acts of terrorism\u2019\u2019;\n\nWhereas, at the direction of President Putin, the Russian Federation has directed and authorized the indiscriminate targeting of civilian centers within Chechnya, Georgia, Syria, and Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of countless innocent men, women, and children; and\n\nWhereas armed forces of the Russian Federation have com- mitted numerous summary executions against innocent civilians and have attempted to cover their atrocities with mass graves across Ukraine: Now, therefore, be it\n\nResolved,\n\nSECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE.\n\nThe Senate\u2014\n\n(1) views the actions of the Government of the Russian Federation, at the direction of President Vladimir Putin, as sponsoring acts of terrorism; and\n\n(2) calls on the Secretary of State to designate the Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism.\n\nSEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:20:25Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=9CD80923-FC0A-4A7B-ADCF-497C6E26F8BB"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9517841972410679, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}