Urge Congress to Support Military Aid for Ukraine

I concluded my previous blog with an appeal to readers to visit your elected officials and insist that they listen to Ukraine and support its quest to join EU structures despite Russian opposition.

The Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS) in Washington, DC, today issued a call to the community to press for Capitol Hill’s approval of three bills dealing with military assistance to Ukraine. All of these matters must be addressed by you as soon as possible.

“The US Congress has recessed for their election campaigning and will not resume their session until mid-November. In the meantime, as the congressmen and senators are campaigning in their respective districts and states, it is imperative that you contact their district offices, request a meeting, and advocate passage of three congressional bills regarding military assistance to Ukraine and non-recognition of Crimea’s ‘annexation’ by Russia. Time is of the essence. Congress will only be in session for a few weeks in November and December. Ukraine needs assistance from the United States immediately,” UNIS said.

The two bills in the House of Representatives are:

* H.R.5190, the “Ukraine Security Assistance Act of 2014” provides military assistance to Ukraine and designates Ukraine as a Major non-NATO Ally (MNNA). It was introduced by Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-PA) and is co-sponsored by Reps. Marcy Kaptur and Sander Levin, co-chairs of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus. 

* H.R.5241, the “Crimea Annexation Non-recognition Act” prohibits the United States to recognize de juro or de facto annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. It was introduced by Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-VA). 

The bill in the U.S. Senate is:

* S.2828, the “Ukraine Freedom Support Act of 2014” provides military and security assistance to Ukraine, designates it as a Major non-NARO Ally (MNNA), and imposes further sanctions on the Russian Federation. The bill was introduced by the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sens. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Bob Corker (R-TN), respectively.

UNIS requests the community to contact elected officials (senator or congressman) immediately and request a meeting to seek their support of H.R.5190, H.R.5241, and S.2828. Please visit http://house.gov or http://senate.gov to find your elected official and send an electronic message requesting their support for the bills.

“Ukraine has been invaded. It needs the Ukrainian American community’s assistance! Act now,” UNIS urged.