the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 410, the nays are zero. 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. the unfinished business is the vote on the motion of the gentleman from california, mr. royce, to suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 499 as amended on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 499, resolution condemning the violation of ukrainian sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity by the military forces of the russian federation. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to the resolution as amended. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a five-minute vote.

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the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 402, the nays are seven. one recorded as present. 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i send to the desk a privileged report from the committee on rules for the filing under the rule. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title.

the clerk: report to accompany house resolution 511, resolution providing for consideration of the bill, h.r. 4138, to protect the separation of powers in the constitution of the united states by ensuring that the president takes care that the laws be fapingtfully executed and for other purposes -- faithfully executed and for other purposes, and for providing for consideration of the bill, h.r. 3973, to amend section 530-d of itle 28, united states code. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed. the chair will now entertain requests for one-minute peeches. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute.

ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much, mr. speaker. i rise today to commemorate brain science awareness week and to highlight amazing advances made by south florida's neuro science community to unravel the mysteries of the mind. at the university of miami's miller school of medicine, research is yielding new insight for the treatment of devastating neurological diseases like alzheimer's. my mother died from complications of alzheimer's, so i know how terrible this disorder is. investigators at the miami project to cure paralysis are transplanting progress into hope for understanding traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries that is impacting thousands of our bravest warriors hurning -- returning home from afghanistan and iraq. on saturday, march 22, scientists will introduce students to the wonders of the human brain at the miami brain science fair in hopes of inspiring young people to pursue the educational and

professional fields that will fuel the next significant scientific discovery. i thank the speaker for the ime. the speaker pro tempore: the louis will be in order -- the house will be in order. . for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman s recognized for one minute. mr. tonko: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to recognize michael c. hoffman for receiving the flame of hope award from the epilepsy foundation of northeastern new york. this award highlights his outstanding dedication and commitment to the epilepsy foundation, raising awareness and funds of overcoming the

challenges of overcoming epilepsy and curing the disease. mike is a successful business owner and has worked for almost four decades to improve the community around him in the capital region of new york. throughout his years as a member of the epilepsy foundation, i'm pleased to see him receive this award. i thank michael c. hoffman for his tireless efforts to improve our communities and congratulate him upon winning the flame of hope award from the epilepsy foundation of northeastern new york. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from tennessee seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. mrs. blackburn: i rise today to highlight the importance of rural health care providers. once again we see president obama standing on ideological grounds rather than actually taking the time to understand

who provides medical care to seniors and how they do it. at the time he is giving stump speeches and trying to convince us that obamacare is working, he is taking $422 billion out of medicare. now part of these cuts come from critical access hospitals and i'm referring to the cuts that he is making to medicare and -- in his fiscal year 2015 budget. it's similar to what he did each of the past two years he, targets the critical access hospitals in order to pay for obamacare. he is proposing to cut medicare payments to the providers who are providing such an important service. our rural health care providers. these patients have an extremely difficult time with access to medical care. they're poor. they're less likely to have provide -- employer-provided

insurance or prescription drug coverage. critical access hospitals are the safety net for many americans and they provide exceptional care. i see it in my district every dayism commend the rural providers and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. poe: mr. speaker, we eat all we can and we sell the rest. that is the slogan for the blue bell creamery in brenham, texas, that makes the best ice cream in the world. with u.s. overabundance of natural gas, especially in texas, that should be america's foreign energy policy. use all we can and sell the rest. in fact, we have so much natural gas in the dakotas they're flaring off gas wells. mr. speaker, the ukraine has been invided by the bully bear

putin. the ukraine by 60% of -- buys 60% of its natural gas from russia. in fact, numerous former soviet republics in europe are held hostage and rely on russia for natural gas. we should give them an option to buy our gas. but we can't even start the process until our government speeds up the approval of exporting gas. russian aggression can be responded to with an energy policy that helps ukraine and the united states. meanwhile, the roar of the russian bear threatens to devour ore sovereign territory in the ukraine. and that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from wyoming seek recognition? mrs. lummis: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. mrs. lummis: on march 21, the neil simpson coal-fired power

plant unit in wyoming is going to shut down. 10 years before its useful life is up. and it's shutting down because the e.p.a. created this rule lled boiler mact -- that stands for maximum attainable coal technology. it was obtainable coal technology, the company wouldn't shut it down 10 years before its useful life is up. it's being shut down because it's not attainable. the e.p.a. did not tell the truth when they told people, this can be attained. and now that plant will be disassembled, taken to another country and put back up and be burning coal there. this is not wise policy, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute

and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i have grave concerns about the proposed deactivation of the 440th airlift wing located at pope army airfield contained in the president's budget. the 440th is critical to conducting the type of training both airborne and special forces located in fort bragg, north carolina, relie on to conduct the high risk missions they're charged with in combat. mr. hudson: beyond the immediate hoint readiness, it will have an impact on over 1,200 service members and their families directly associated with the unit. while i understand we face challenging fiscal times, i expect the company to take a broad approach when it comes to savings. while retiring an airframe may make sense on paper, we have to take more into account. i find it hard to believe this out of state units can provide the same training as those who

have troops on the ground. cutting fort bragg's operations by 23% could further erode our readiness at a time when the united states can't afford it. eliminating the ability to rapidly deploy and train our most valuable forces. i look forward to working with my colleagues to prevent these devastating cuts to our forces. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> i rise -- mr. paulsen: i rise to commend the dina hornets for winning against a tough lakeville north squad. the -- they became the first a.a. hockey team to win back-to-back state championships in 20 years. led by senior captain and mr. minnesota hockey finalist tyler

lanne led them to a victory. it's a zestment to the hard work of these young men that they spend countless hours on the ice while balancing their school work, family times and other endeavors. becoming state champions doesn't happen overnight but through years of dedication. the teach the parents, the entire school district are tremendously proud, congratulations again to the high school hockey champions. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, one week ago i stood in the parking lot of

manville high school, waiting. mr. olson: a few minutes before 4:00 p.m., the texas women's 5-a state champs came home. to win state, the lady mavericks had to go through a door blocked by the two-time defending state champion, the duncanville panthers. in november, the lady mavs knocked on the panthers' door. it didn't open. for three quarters at the state championship they banged on the panthers' door. it didn't budge. but in the last quarter, the lady mavs kicked that son of a gun open and walked through to become the state 5-a champs. -- i say in manville,

yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from washington seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. >> i'd like to take time to recognize the men and women of fair child air force base in my home. mrs. mcmorris rodgers: they welcomed home the last plain from during stan. transitly a decade, the center there was home away from home for these men and women and every day fairchild tankers would launch oout of minot and refuel the warplanes supporting coalition troops on the ground. day in and day out the gas stations in the sky gave fighters more time over their enemy targets and saved american lives.

they provided lifesaving fuel for fighters when osama bin laden was found. as the kc-135's and airmen are returned to fairchild, we must not forget those we lost. last spring, captains mike voss, cory pinkney and a tech sergeant died in during stan. i -- died overseas. thank you to the leaders and community members at fairchild air force base for their dedication to our country over the last nine years. god bless you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. wilson: recently, i received a heartbreaking email from connie in south carolina. because of obamacare, connie's health care policy premiums have

increased $100 a month and her deductible has grown to over $2,500 a year. she explains the truth, despite senate smears. these unexpected costs have created significant burdens for her family. she's the mother of a child with mental health issues. it is shameful that government regulations are making her choose between seeking medical assistance and feeding her family. connie writes, quote, it's heart wrenching that as a mother i have to second-guess myself any time i think about taking my children to the doctors. i may have coverage but i pay my premiums and i don't have enough left to pay for the doctor visit itself, end of quote. obamacare is threatening the middle class and destroying american families and jobs. on behalf of mothers and fathers across this nation who are suffering at obamacare's expense, it's time for the president to work with congress, to repeal this unworkable law

and replace it with commonsense solutions. and in conclusion, god bless our troop, we will never forget september 11 and the globe war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, today the house acted on an important piece of legislation that strikes at the heart of our democracy. the equitable access to care and health act or each act. the individual man tate of the 2010 health care law included a very narrow exemption for religious groups. members of certain recognized religious sects could be exempted from the requirement to purchase health care or face the penalty of a tax for noncompliance. to qualify for the current exemption they must waive all public and private insurance benefits including social security and medicare. individuals who participate in

social security and medicare but whose religious beliefs cause them to object to medical health care are not eligible for existing exemption. the each act which had bipartisan support, expands this exemption for individuals who sin -- whose sincerely held religious beliefs would cause them to object to medical health care provided under such coverage. mr. speaker, religious freedom must be protected for all americans. passage of the each act is a step forward in safeguarding this fundamental and enduring principal. i yield back. -- and enduring principle. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leave of absence requested for mr. mcintyre of north carolina for today. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the request is granted. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. kaptur, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the

inority leader. ms. kaptur: thank you. mr. speaker, my remarks this evening will focus on the crisis facing ukraine and our world, the most significant test of the will of liberty-loving people since the collapse of the soviet union and the end of the cold war. the events halfway around the world remind us how precious our own liberties are and how important it is for the world community of liberty-loving nations, those that respect human life and those that believe in democratic advancement, we have common cause with those who stood in

the streets in the subzero temperatures of ukraine. whose futures are uncertain as i deliver my remarks this evening. the world community of liberty-loving nations and those that respect treaty obligations and their roles as members of the united nations security council cannot let the kind of illegal invasion of another country stand. russia, one of the permanent members of the security council of the united states, has invaded a sovereign country. violating her territorial integrity and putting off the day that ukraine can handle its own internal affairs in order to get rid of the corruption of he former regime and allow the voices of people who so very

much want to live in a free society to fully develop. our nation and the world have to stand up for freedom, democracy, human rights in ukraine. these precious values will be diminished everywhere if we fail to raise our voices in support of those whose lives are at risk and the west, involving our allies from around the world, have to exert strong diplomatic initiatives, economic reform, including a financing package that the international monetary fund and other nations are putting together, humanitarian relief if requested and million tear -- military assistance to strengthen our nato alliance and the protection of borders.

recently the ambassador from ukraine to the united states, ambassador, wrote a letter to members of congress and tonight i'm going to read it into the record. so that every american can hear it. and he wrote, dear members of the united states congress, i would like to begin by thanking the united states of america and specifically the united states congress for the unwavering support of ukraine at these challenging times. for the past couple of months, ukraine has been in the world's headlines. the whole world saw the determination of hundreds of thousands of ukrainianian --s who took to the street -- ukrainians who took to the streets to stand for a better life, for freedom, democracy and the end of blatant corruption that stifled our country for far too long. yet the yanukovych regime tried to silence the protesters with guns.

dozens and dozens were killed. and others wounded. peaceful and unarmed demonstrators were met by special forces with snipers who shot dead almost 100 people and wounded hundreds more. in an attempt to prevent further bloodshed and resolve the crisis, on february 21, 2014, leaders of the opposition , vitali klitschko, oleg and ar senty on one side --ers any on one side, and the corrupt regime on the other, they signed an agreement that had been negotiated with the help of foreign ministers of poland, of germany and france. russia's special envoy was present but refused to sign it. therefore the suggestion by the russian side that the opposition failed to implement the agreement is groundless. ed for an end call

of violence, restoration of the ukrainian constitution of 2004, and early presidential elections. however, on february 22, 2014, the president, victor yanukovych, fled the capitol and de facto removed himself from his constitutional authority. herefore on february 27, 2014, what is similar to our congress, the lawmakers of the country, was the only legitimate authority in ukraine at that time, given the resignation of the government and the president's self-removal from exercising his functions, and restored the 2004 constitution approved by 386 of 450 members there, recognized that victor yanukovych removed himself from his constitutional duties through unconstitutional means by 386 votes, including 140

votes from the pro-yanukovych party of regions. and set the early elections of the president of ukraine for this coming may 25, 2014. 328 members, the vast majority of members of their congress voted for that. according to article 112 of the constitution of ukraine of 2004, in case of early termination of powers of the president of ukraine, the functions of the president of ukraine shall be carried out by the speaker of the parliament until a new president is elected and inaugurated. the only legitimate supreme authority in ukraine is the rada, their congress. the rada elected its new peaker by 288 votes, much more than a majority, who acts as the president of ukraine until the elections and appointed its prime minister by 371 votes,

over 3/4 of the membership. these actions were made in full compliance with ukrainian laws. as the american people listen to what is happening there, you are watching a country trying to hold its government together. it was like at the beginning of our republic, when we weren't quite sure exactly how it was all going to be put together, but we were trying mightily to create a republic. however, even after the ukrainian congress did that, russia did not recognize these changes and considers the former president, viktor yanukovych, its legitimate president, despite the votes of the parliament, the highest standing body in the nation of ukraine. producing a piece of paper purporting to be mr. yanukovych's letter asking mr. putin, the president of russia, to send russian troops to ukraine, the federation council of russia, upon mr. putin's request, approved such a decision. some of us who are old enough

to remember, remember what it was like living with a soviet union. a soviet union that invaded its neighbors. a soviet union that moved its tanks across europe. a soviet union that killed over 14 million of its own people. there are some americans old enough to remember that. now, the former president of ukraine, mr. yanukovych, who stole from his own people, those are my words, not the ambassador's, is no longer the president of ukraine, particularly after his escape from kiev on february 22, 2014. therefore none of his statements have any significance under either ukrainian or international law. but in any way, even if the legitimate president of ukraine called upon a foreign country to intervene with its armed forces in ukraine, such a statement would also be worth nothing. because the constitution of kraine, article 85, only the

rada, its congress, can approve decisions on admitting units of armed forces of other states to the territory of ukraine, the rada clearly stated it had not made any such decisions. seeing that ukraine is determined to pursue its european course, russia under the completely trumped up pretext invaded crimea with its armed forces. people of hungarian american ancestry understand what it's like to be invaded. people of polish american heritage understand what it's like to be invaded. people of lithuanian, latvian, estonian heritage understand what it is to be invaded by the big bear. there are plenty of americans who understand what the ukrainian people are facing just now. the russian forces are seeking to establish complete control over ukraine's military

facilities in crimea, trying to block and disarm ukrainian military garrisons in border guard bases, blocking airports and ships. the russian troops and armored vehicles are moving uncontrollably around crimea, one of ukraine's states, and numerous russian military planes and helicopters violated ukrainian air space. russia's power far outweighs ukraine, which is nearly defenseless. facing this massive force. and yet ukrainian soldiers have in ered down in army bases, air control stations, trying to stand up as they are surrounded . what courage. what courage. by countless provocations, russian military is seeking to instigate an armed conflict and replicate in ukraine the

scenario, however ukrainian service men act with utmost restraint and don't react to such provocations. but there's a threat that russia may engineer provocations, they've been known to do that, againsts i own troops and blame -- against its own troops and blame them on ukraine. don't forget, russia's president was head of the k.g.b. their secret police. he knows these techniques well. there's also an ongoing accumulation of military equipment on the russian territory, in close proximity o the border of ukraine in the areas. what does that mean? these actions may indicate preparedness of the russian side for possible intervention into the ukrainian territory across the land border. the military intervention is accompanied by a huge outboofert of fabcations. i can assure that you russians speaking citizens of ukraine

enjoy the same rights and freedoms of other citizens of my country, the ambassador says. nobody has ever for biden, for bids or will for bid the use of the russian language as the russian propaganda tries to demonstrate. in fact, if you go to ukraine, people speak many languages. they speak ukrainians, they speak russian, some speak a combination. some speak polish, as well. some speak german. there are many languages spoken in the nation of ukraine. as of today, there is no proof of any violations of russian minority rights in ukraine. there were no appeals to the relevant ukrainian authorities,neather from those allegedly affected, nor from russia's officials, and in accordance with the memorandum of understanding between the parliamentary commissioner on human rights of ukraine and the omnibus of the russian federation in the case of such appeals to the russian side, they are transferred to the ukrainian ombudsmen.

the actions by the russian federation constitute an action of aggression against the state of ukraine. russian federation brutally violated the basic principles of the charter of the united nations, obliging all member states to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. this, what has happened, is serious. ukraine, in the strongest possible terms, protected such actions but russia officially rejected ukrainian proposals to hold immediate bilateral consultation under article seven of the treaty on friendship, corporation and partnership between ukraine and the russian federation of 1997. again, another treaty violation. russia's actions pose a serious threat, not only to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of ukraine, but also to peace and stability in the whole region.

moreover, russia's actions provoke a disbalance in the international security system and can lead to violations of the regime of international nuclear nonproliferation on a global scale. when in 1994 ukraine became a party to the nonproliferation treaty and voluntarily surrendered the third largest nuclear arsenal in the world, it did so exclusively under certain conditions. these conditions enadviceaged granting security assurances to ukraine by the five nuclear states. on december 5, 1994, the united states, the russian federation, and the united kingdom signed the budapest memorandum on security assurances to ukraine. the french republic and the people's republic of china supported the memorandum by signing separate declarations. ukraine has thoroughly implemented its commitments under the nonproliferation treaty and has taken and

fulfilled additional obligations by getting rid of all of its stockpiles of highly enriched ukraineum. today we witness the situation when the russian federation attempts to undermine that treaty and that regime, not only by violating the budapest memorandum, but also by violating the nonproliferation treaty which clearly states in its preamble that, quote, states must refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state or in any other manner, unquote. nonadherence by one state, the russian federation, to its commitment under the budapest memorandum creates a situation in the threshold state mace consider international legal instruments instouf ensure security, territorial integrity

and viability of their board -- and inviolability of their borders. we rely on the commitments of the budapest memorandum and the charter on a distinctive partnership between nato and ukraine as well as the ukraine charter on strategic partnership. ukraine is asking the world community to pay attention. we need help, they say, from the guarantor states. from the united nations. from nato. from the organization for security and cooperation in europe. who by the way have been denied access ton repeated attempts to enter crimea, unarmed, to observe. russia has denied them entry. the european union, all civilized nations, to protect our sovereignty and territorial integrity by all available means, and to prevent a war which would shatter peace in europe and will have grave and

irrevocable consequences for peace and security on a global scale. am bass car -- the ambassador goes on, the aggression must be stopped and we rely on the strong and unified positions of the global community. military communities deployed from russia must leave the tirer to of the ukraine immediately and those belonging to the russian black sea fleet must return to their bare racks. armed gangs that came from russia must also immediately leave the ukraine. crimea is an inalienable part of ukraine with citizens of all ethnic backgrounds. all issues should be resolved through negotiations there is no alternative to a peaceful and diplomatic solution of the crisis. we hope that wisdom will prevail, we need america's help and we will count on it. ncerely yours, alexander

motsig, ambassador of the ukraine to the united states, washington, d.c. i ask unanimous consent that that statement be placed in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. kaptur: i also want to say that there's been some conjecture in the news that we've heard the president of russia say that crimea really doesn't belong in ukraine because back in the 1950's, when there was a russian leader by clever he, got drunk one -- of kruschev, he got drunk one night and consigned crimea to ukraine by accident, because he wasn't thinking. i would like to place into the record a very interesting fact -- very interesting facts that were in a book published in moscow in 2003, titled "ukraine, not russia" written by the former president of the ukraine.

in chapter 14 of that book, the president devoted 13 pages to trace the history of crimea and ukraine. he calls it the crimean knot he said when he discusses the politics around the transfer of crimea to ukraine in 1954, he says, the then-trans-- transition to ukraine quan administration after ukraine ecame independent and how he dealt with separatist forces in his tenure as president he man tains that the transfer of crimea from russia to ukraine came in response to petitions from the crimians themselves who felt -- from the crimeans themselveses who felt moscow was too far away and insufficiently

responsive to their everyday response -- everyday concerns, while their own capital of kiev was likely to be more attentive, particularly on issues of water and other utilities. so they could provide for crimea better than moscow, located far, far away. crimea, then, he writes, was a desert and frontier land, he's referring back to the post-world war ii period, particularly after the devastation of world war ii. violated and just leveled to such an extent. it's hard for people in the west who have never experienced that to fully accommodate what happened there the residents believe ukraine would be a better fit administratively and so he says, the president who headed that country, the story

kruschev n nikita reading crimea to ukraine as a gift is false. ight after stalin's death, kruschev hardly had the authority to make such unilateral decisions. he was vying for power inside his own country and the actual act of transferring crime wra to ukraine was signed by the head of what was called the presidium , not kruschev. so the president of russia maybe didn't read history, i don't know, but the point was the roffer ukraine came in 1954. and it was a consequential date and has remained in ukraine as part of that region for the entire second half of the 20th century and the first decade of

this semplery. i thought it was important to put that -- of this century. i thought it was important to put that on the record. i also want to say as a member of congress, i'm so very, very proud of the work that's been done by the legal authority in ukraine that is holding that nation together. they are our counterpart. they are a legislative branch of their government, just as we are here, and we for many years now, since 1999, have had a parliamentary exchange with ukraine founded and signed by ll of our members with the former speaker of their our speaker here from many congresses back, speaker dennis hastert. that agreement lives today and

over the last decade and a half, we have had many parliamentary exchanges. we have had teleconferences. we have had journeys by ukrainian parliamentarians here and american members of congress there. we believe that the checkive intelligence of ukraine is contained in that. we are very proud of the work that they are doing and we want to continue working with them. our agreement says that we want strategic on the partnership between the united states and ukraine, first established in 1996. and that our parliamentary exchange would serve as a conduit in further developing and continuing economic and political cooperation between our two countries. the types of discussion this is a we have held and will continue to do in the future will encompass economic relations, trade, space ex-particularation, health care, the environment,

agriculture, natural resources, and any other matter important to the promotion of close ties between the united states and ukraine. surely this is a moment for more robust engagement with the parliament of ukraine and our own congress. the idea is that we can learn from one another, we can be mutually supportive, and we know how important legislative bodies are to nation this is a actually -- to nations that actually expand rights of free speech, rights of free press, rights of free expression of religion and we are proud to be partnered with them. i would also like to place in the record this evening an excellent article that was itten for that the the new republic" -- for "the new

republic," by a scholar, recent best sell -- write over bester "the bloodlands," an incredible work, but in this particular article, he talks where putin is vulnerable, where his soft spots are, and he states at the beginning of the article, in dispatching troops to ukraine, russia has violated international law, flouted multiple treaty commitments, and set the stage for a european war. it is right that the american people are paying attention. it is right that we are using the bear to try to put back where it belongs and to try to move the situation to stability. price of poor diplomacy i

think would be catastrophic. in this article, dr. snyder ends by saying, russian propaganda derides europeans a as fay and helpless and we too often tend to agree but the european union does have instruments of influence and its greatest power, of course, is its attractiveness to societies on its borders such as ukraine. but even where membership is not an option and the european union faces unambiguous hostility, it can act. russia's very contempt for the european union might force europeans to undertake a more active foreign policy and to take responsibility for their neighborhood. the united states has to use our power to help push the situation in that direction. just wanted to ask if -- our

dear colleague from iowa, does he have his own special order or does he wish to join in this special order? congressman king of iowa? mr. king: i very much appreciate the gentlelady for yielding to me and i have a few topics i intend to bring up in a subsequent hour but i'd be happy to -- i want to thank the gentlelady for raising this topic and for the significant information that's been delivered here with regard to the ukraine, the russians and the political scenario that we are in. and i'm contemplating what this means to the world. i will say, mr. speaker, that i'm more troubled than many about the circumstances that have unfolded for the -- off the black sea. i have watched as putin set up the olympics, looked like a poofert it was for self-glorification. when i think about what this

means politically, much of the world is looking at putin thinking, well, look at all the $50 billion plus you invested in the olympics and now you see the world opinion now has turned against you when you had all that good will that was garnered at the sew chee olympics -- at the sochi olympics and i think it's a different perspective if where i sat. a component of this is true but i don't think putin cares about world opinion, i think he cares about hegemony he can deliver from the seat he has and i think that the good will that was -- that came among the -- among the russian people, his popularity numbers had to go up. this is a man who went through a difficult, contentious election in 2012. there were demonstrations in the streets in the multiple places around russia, the tension that was there, any leader's hold on power can't just be by force and fear alone. there has to be some support that's there. i believe that the olympics

actually helped putin, gave him the support base at home that would allow limb to pull off an invasion, an illegal invasion of the crimea. i don't think he cares about what we think, i don't think he cares what the president thinks, mr. speaker. i don't think he cares so much what the european union thinks, as long as they continue to buy gas from him and keep his economy going. but i think that was a component. the next thing is, when -- i have watched him for a good number of years, perhaps not with the attention to detail the gentlelady from ohio has delivered here tonight, but i have long concluded that putin is committed to restoring to the extent he can in his time the old soviet union. i think he see this is as a giant geopolitical chess game and i would think back at the ronald 1984 when then reagan's ambassador, gene kirkpatrick, step -- jean

kirkpatrick, stepped down from her role as ambassador, i remember picking up on page three or four of the newspaper, a tiny little article that said a little quote that i think she was well known for, jean kirkpatrick, she said, we were in the depths of the cold war at the time, i would add, and the said, what's going on in this cold war between the united states of america and the soviet union is the equivalent of playing chess and monopoly on the same board and the question is, will the united states of america break the soviet union economically in the monopoly component of the game before the soviet union check mates the nited states militarily? that was the contest as far as pope john paul ii saw it. and the strength of the economy of the united states and our ability to develop more and more

technology to put up our national defenses became the deciding factor and the soviet union could no longer couldn't keep up with the free world and our economy overwhelmed the managed economy of the soviets gorbachev lly -- and was a player in this. so i think he saw he couldn't hold it together anymore. and to the extent he cooperated with lady thatcher and president reagan -- and i hold in my office a piece of the berlin wall and that's framed in my office. nd i have had it since 1989 -- actually, it was september 12, 1990, that that piece was cut out of the wall. i didn't do it myself.

that piece of the wall represents a piece of the iron curtain itself. the berlin wall. whether it was the physical structure of the iron curtain that winston churchill described. that iron curtain was drawn by i believe the finger of winston churchill, franklin roosevelt and joseph stalin at yalta on february 11, 1945, when we didn't know how world war ii was going to turn out. but the allies got together and they drew a line across the map and that line on the map was on the east side of that line, they were going to live under the soviet union. e iron fifth of communism -- fist and it was determined at

yalta and curious that putin has invaded crimea that inclauds yal tmp a and i hope to stand on that real estate where ma decision was made and it is a momentous time in history and countrye effect of free after free country and spilled over to southeast asian korea and southeast asia. i have longed believed that held we had a different position, if we had insisted with stalin we weren't going to hand over the countries over to him we would end up with a map we see today. think how different it is. when people think of this and when the gentlelady of ohio discuss this in the discussions

we have, to think how that iron curtain was constructed, to be how that yalta and line moved when the berlin wall came down in november of 1989 as each of the eastern bloc countries grasped their freedom and i think of the people standing in the square in prague and stood there and rattled their keys in the square and into a e they rattled bloodless revolution. that kind of desire and that heart for freedom washed across eastern europe and washed across russia for a time. freedom echoed all across europe and all the way to the pacific ocean. i believed that for a while and we don't believe that today

because the russia that has been ruled under putin isn't the russia the people believed they were going to get when the soviet union melted down and imploded and we hoped for a time was the end of a cold war. now i fear it has relaunched and restarted and look at this map where the new iro curtain is and it's the border of russia and should not be allowed to creep west of the border of russia and that's where the gentlelady and i are working towards restoringing the strength of the people of that country. and i very much appreciate the gentlelady and i yield back. ms. kaptur: i thank congressman king and attending the briefing this afternoon and participating fully in that effort.

as you were speaking, i have a piece of my berlin wall and i have it framed and will be there for the people of my region forever and it's all framed and labeled in memory of that incredible moment. what we learned during that period of time, post-world war ii, we have to maintain our resolve and i say this to the people of ukraine, that we will not forget you. and if the world holds -- if liberty-loving nations use their collect i have power, change is possible. change for the better is possible. those who have fear, know that there have been models of states before. take hungary that was invaded in 1956. i can remember the cardinal being locked, going down -- when

the tanks came in, the cardinal became a symbol for the whole world. they gave him a closet and i was he hadng in budapest and defiance against the regime and our government played a role. he was roman catholic. he risked his life. he became a symbol. in poland, if we look what happened in the 1950's and 196 eye as union labor were killed about them, they were standing up for their rights to have a better way of life. and pope john paul ii became a pope from inside the iron

curtain and we saw how religious leaders struggled with the people to give them full voice. it's just so historically compelling and from another realm. from an advanced realm where the human soul seeks to bring a better way of life for people who are fighting against the odds and they don't have nuclear weapons at their beckoning, but there is a spirit who want to build a better way of life. and in thinking with the people of ukraine, we hope we embody that spirit. we were combraced at the national prayer breakfast with the head of the orthodox christian congregation of ukraine and we also had other leaders from the greek catholic, he baptist -- jewish

denominations in ukraine and i have this hope that as easter and pass over aproferse that the religious leaders will invite the world community that want vow very much for the people of the ukraine to be free, that we will find a way to pray for their future together. we hope the religious leaders of ukraine invite us. i would love to be in that proceedings. what a place for the world community to be in this easter-passover season. there were muslims that stood in the square in kiev. there were orthodox, baptists, catholics, christian leaders, what courage. they had no weapons. the weapons were all around them. but they stood their ground.

the power of that message is not lost on the people of ukraine. not lost on her neighbors and not lost on russia. great spirit to stand with those who want to be free and to find a way to do that. you know, the russian government has never known freedom. they have never had a free election. they have no concept of how to run a free society. i first traveled into that region in 1973, trying to find the remnants of our family. the further we drove, we ended sclaffvack heck yeah. a military truck was on the road and i can remember our mother was in the car and i was driving and the further we got as we headed toward prague, the

military soldiers would lift up he tarps up, these two women driving in this orange car. we must have been a real curiosity and completely unarmed. they checked you before you went over the border. i remember going over that border and the guns and the barbed wire and how our luggage was examined and the further we got, the more lonely it became, until we were the only vehicle on the road as we entered ukraine for the first time at a crossing the border and the soviets making us wait five hours at the border so they could take our car apart. we had two suitcases, they

thought they would have brought seven suitcases. they held us at the border until there was night. there were no street lights or traffic signs and had to find our way from poland on the major city on the western side of ukraine and riding over the roads which had huge rocks. i thought there was going to be a flat. there were no gas stations. there was nothing. there was no electricity. and we drove into the wilderness and trying to find that town. and when we finally got there very late at night, i saw this little sign called in-tourists stay.lowed attorneyers to and i said this must be the place to stay. there was nobody on the streets, no vehicles and just this little

tiny sign in the window and i went in and there was one desk clerk and one gentleman who was dressed in an elevator outfit and he didn't speak any english and i didn't speak his language and he signaled me to take the car. i was in the car. we drove it to the opera house which was incomplete disarray seized and was then put behind those closed gates. we had to go everywhere on foot and we were trying to find the pieces of our family. our grandparents came to america 100 years before. i remember how grim it was. i remember people didn't laugh a lot, they didn't have a lot to eat. we tried to find our relatives. we had relatives in poland to notify our village where our

grandparents came and we stayed in the hotel for three days and we thought nobody was coming. ur mother who spoke polish and understood ukraine and russian and we were the only people in the hotel and they were told that we weren't there. i can remember how awful that was and of course the room we stayed in was in the second floor of a building they now call the st. george hotel. and they stationed a very large woman outside our door, our hotel door there with a table and water bottle and she knew about we were coming or going and who came in and listening device on the wall. no curtains on the windows and no hot water. i remember how spars it was. and as a young american, i was

just -- and i'm in congress today because of what i experienced back then and the understanding that i came to have of what life was like there and how difficult it was. and then i can't go into it all this evening, but i learned about the suffering of the people firsthand. i think one of the shocking experiences i had is how poorly the russian government treated its veterans. . . they asked me for wheelchairs nd other basics, they had very little respect for their own people. when i see putin invade ukraine, invade crimea, he has no respect for the people there we got into the villages, you could only go to certain approved villages in

those days and i found that in the village of our grandparents, they had to build an outhouse for taos visit. -- us to visit. with this tiny set of stones going out to the outhouse. americans go what? i said, yes, their life was so basic. so basic. i thought i'd never eat a potato again in my life because all we ate was potatos with lard on top for breakfast, lunch and dinner and tomatoes that had been canned. they gave us the best they had. and i thought, so this is communism. well. the life of the ordinary person is so pitiful. they had no fresh water. i got deathly ill.

there were no doctors. couldn't get medicine. i learned what dysentery was. i learned what unsafe food was. and i learned how the relatives, including one of my great uncles, had been tortured and sent to work camps, they called the gulags. his brother died this. -- died there. and i began to understand the full price that families pay who live under those kinds of systems. so president putin has no clue to what a free society really means. so much suffering, so much unneeded suffering, and we have this moment in history to make a difference.

i know the american people are considering how to make that difference. and freedom loving people around the world are as well. i find the judicious and firm acts of president obama and secretary kerry to be very constructive. america can't be babysitter for the world. on the other hand, there's a conscience that rises in freedom lovers and thinking together, america will make the right decisions with their allies around the world. to right this situation. and to arow those who want their liberty after paying such an egregious price, to have that moment in their own history. i am -- i see our dear colleague from new york, congressman carolyn maloney, appropriately attired this evening, in full ukrainian spirit, has joined us. welcome. mrs. maloney: thank you so much, congresswoman kaptur, for your leadership, for organizing a

briefing earlier today for members of congress with head leaders from the state department on the actions that are happening and for your leadership in passing h.r. 499 today which condemned the violation of ukrainian sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity by military forces of the russian federation and we appreciate very much your making that happen and helping taos pass this that resolution. once again, the russians have rattled their sabers and tightened their grip on the ukraine and in the past 24 hours, they have seized a ukrainian naval base and even though the constitution declares crimea to be an integral part of ukraine, the pro-russian regional authorities in crimea continue to sever links to ukraine's capital today,

canceling incoming flights from kiev. they have also run out of town any of the monitors that have come from the united nations or the independent free world. flights to and from turkey also have been suspended and the russians have threatened to western assets and refused to speak to ukraine's prime minister on the phone. the interim prime min stare found $80 million missing, loan guarantee money that is missing and this congress needs to work together to find that money and return it rightfully to the ukrainian people. nkovic, the disgraced -- yanukovich the disgraced former president, did the russians' bidding. once again today the russians ignored international norms,

calls for restraint and all the cries for justice, for all those who were gunned down in independence square. congresswoman are you aware that there's been no action to punish the people who killed community leaders and others in independence square? 82 people were murdered and my constituents have held vigils, they have memorials that they have constructed in their churches, they have pictures of every single martyred hero and heroine with their stories yet no one has been held accountable for that crime against decency and humanity of killing innocent people. they have ignored ukrainian sovereignty, treaties and the rule of law. all in an effort to re-establish a disgraced petty tyrant whose secret life of obscene opulence included, this is hard to say,

gold toilets, that's what they're sending on the internet, and pictures of all of his zoos and house and all kinds of things where he wasted the money of the ukrainian people on wasteful things. on the other hand the ukrainians have already done the right thing for the world around them. in 1994, they signed the budapest mem ran tum on security assurances and willing -- budapest memorandum on security assurances and willingly gave up the third largest stockpile of nuclear weapons. they are a peace-loving people. with the peaceful stroke of a pen this eliminated a far greater threat to world peace than north korea and iran combined and the key thing the ukrainians were promised in return was security. assurance against threats or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of ukraine. the u.s. and russia, congress

lady, were signatories to this statement. president obama has made it clear that america will stand with the ukrainian people. we are all watching every day on television what is happening. what has struck me the most was the scene where the russians were shooting in the air and shouting at the ukrainians and they marched peacefully toward them and one general called out, america stands with us, and that is true. america stands with peace-loving people around the world and for democracy and we is a often take for granted the freedoms, the liberties, the democracy that we have that others are struggling for around the world. tomorrow, the ukraine's interim prime minister is scheduled to meet president obama at the white house. here in our country. the white house has announced visa -- visa restrictions on

russians and crimeans who are threatening the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the ukraine. the president is working with america's allies to craft economic sanction this is a will punish and isolate the architects of this aggression. secretary of state john kerry has traveled to kiev to mourn for the fallen in independence square and bring $1 billion in american loan guarantees and pledges of technical assistance. we overwhelmingly passed the $1 billion loan guarantee without a cap here in our congress on friday. it was an important vote. and we all stood with the ukrainians. and now it's time for congress to make it career that -- make it clear that we stand with the ukrainian people. the resolution we passed stood good start, condemning the violation of ukrainian sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity by

military forces of the russian federation. to paraphrase the ewe yain -- ukrainian anthem, their persistence and toils should be rewarded. let's freedom's song resound. we should be asking our friends in russia, what is their word worth? what is their signature worth on any document on any treaty or any contract? what is their word worth? i would like to invite the distinguished congress lady to join me this saturday with the ukrainian community on roosevelt island, named after f.d.r. that went to crimea forall ta and crimea the four -- to for yalta and spoke of the four freedoms, freedom of democracy, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, these freedoms are what

the people of ukraine are fighting for, longing for, working for. we are going to gather at the four freedoms bark in manhattan to pray with, to be with and to stand with the ukrainian people. they are fighting for their freedom, for their independence, for american values they want as their values and america stands with them. the american people are standing with the ukrainians and i thank the gentlelady for having founded the ukrainian caucus here in congress of which i am a member and also for having crafted resolutions and so many statements in their support and helping to organize in a bipartisan way, because this country is united, we are speaking with one voice, republicans and democrats in support of the ukrainian people. i thank the gentlelady for her

magnificent leadership. i yield back to her. ms. kaptur: i thank the congresswoman, congresswoman maloney of new york, to take time on the busy day, to work way overtime tonight, to join our prix for the people of ukraine. thank you for your leadership in the ukrainian caucus, thank you for wearing a possess isn't a blouse which has a long, deep history in ukraine, and ukraine bread basket to europe, bread basket to the world, now the third largest exporter of grain despite all the hardships that the corrupt government of that country has placed on their farmers who simply want to earn a living from the soil and share their great gift from the world and have face sod many roadblocks. thank you for appreciating their artistry, the beauty, the magnificent beauty of that country and for your steadfast support of liberty both here and

abroad. you've just been a magnificent member. we thank you so much for coming down here this evening. you know, congresswoman maloney reminded me as she was speaking about new yorkers who are going to gatt for the four freedoms park in new york city, our great city of new york a home to people from throughout the world, i wanted to just place on the record that there are more ukrainians living outside ukraine than inside its borders because of the tragedy that was occurred there -- tragedies that have occurred there over the last century and more, particularly because of the stalin and soviet period. ukrainians live in canada, ortugal, italy, argentina, australia, they're strewn across the globe. as i mentioned in earlier remarks this evening, millions

of her own people were either starved to death, they were murdered, they were killed by their own government, the government of the soviet union who tried to eliminate ukrainian culture, polish culture, the jewish religion, i mean, now we're worried about the tatars in crimea, because they don't share the majority religion, they're a minority and the history of tyrannical leaders in that part of the world has unfortunately been to kill those who don't agree with them rather than to create a civil society in which all views can be expressed even though we might not agree with them system of we worry, we worry about the people there, we are trying to be a voice for them here in our own untry, a voice or succor for freedom, not for brutality or

repression a voice for encouragement, not force alone. i want to thank congresswoman maloney and congressman king for joining us this evening. may god bless america and may god bless the people of ukraine and the legitimate government of ukraine as she seeks to build liberty and justice for all her people. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yield back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013rks the gentleman from iowa, mr. king, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority eader. mr. king: i would first like to say i appreciate the gentlelady's presentation and the attention to the part of the world that has been the center of discussion here tonight and should be the center of our american discussion and will be for some time to come.

as i watch this unfold and think of the time in 2008 when i found myself in the nation of georgia a little more than a week after e russians invaded two provinces of georgia and having arrived there and met with the leadership of georgia and his cabinet that were young people and the minister of defense that was awaiting his 30th birthday, i heard the narrative on what the russians had planned and what the russians had done. history is a little bit undecided, mr. speaker, about who fired the first shot in georgia. it may have been the russians. and the georgians fired back. the narrative that i received there that was with our state

department and with the representatives of the nation state of georgia, brought together information that there was a single underpass, two-lane underpass and within a 24-hour period of time, tanks and other equipment, went under that underpass and staged that invasion of georgia that could not have been a spontaneous response or the russians who may well have fired the first shots. in any case, when the russians went in and occupied those parts f grea, that began, a movement passed eny and it was off that the georgia circumstances were an anomaly and recommendingal tensions were

brought up and wasn't what putin was thinking about. i believe it was the first piece on the giant chestboard that our president doesn't seem to think that is in play any longer, that cold war chestboard. when i look at the map of that part of the world and look at the flow of energy that goes back and forth. the ukraine and georgia have similarities, one is they have ports. second one is they are a nexus, transmitting energy with pipelines and in the case of georgia rail lines, if you control georgia, you can control energy from the east and control yugoslavia, you can stroll energy. those two things. and the historical involvement,

i take us back to the gentlelady from ohio who laid out the case of the 1994 treaty that the russians signed and the interested parties signed that all would respect the borders of the ukraine and the russians violated that. i don't expect much of anything else to happen. i don't think they are bound by their honor. but only bound by the limitations of the static tensions that comes from power and that power can be political and economic. but it is in the highest degree, its military. and when there is no military deterrence in place, putin is demmed to move forward and reconstitute the old soviet union. he lamented, the worst thing that happened was the implosion of the soviet union, the diss expression of the soviet union. the world is not going to

tolerate a lone superpower and unchallenged nation of the world. global reach everywhere and when the united states pulls back. first, we project power. we project power economically, culturally and militarily and strategically. then the lust for power fills that vacuum. it's pushing. russia pushed into georgia in 2008. they gave us a preview of what was to come. now here we are these six or so years later and watching now as putin finished up with his olympics, i think a lot of it has to do with raising the

spirits of the soviet people so he could get away with this cold tactic of a military invasion and conquest of the crimea. and he he has his ice on the balance of the ukraine and the old soviet union and whatever order he can pull this off. and if we show weakness and don't stare him down and don't ut the he equipment and things in place, putin is going to move through these countries one through the other. there is a hiatus through georgia and ukraine that has been occupied. but i think it's interesting and ironic, mr. speaker, that it is the crimea, that has been grabbed as part of the ukraine and now -- the russians have

annexed and forcing a referen dumb this sunday when they talk about how the do you meana has putinrate, it is how this ommands. a dictator who had a conquest for domination. i would fake us back to history as i saw this happen when the russians went into the crimea, mr. speaker, immediately, i began to rethink the sequence of history when hitler demanded

sudan ey receive the antland and the pretense he used is identical to putin. hitler said there are german-speaking people and they deserve german representation and someone has to represent them and i need to do that as fuhrer. r as the and that was the pretense that he used that took place in munich in munich in march -- in munich in march of 1938. before we go to that spot. there was a peaceful march and invasion of the nation of austria and pulling us back in that history, there was significant pressure put on the

ople of austria that began back in 1938. hitler made the arguments. stria is a german-speaking country. it isn't a distinct one. but hitler put pressure on the chancellor of austria and as he got the chancellor of austria to make appointments of officers, he weakend the resistance of the leadership and on march 12, 1938, march 11, the chancellor of austria resigned. troops flowed in and 13 of march, they declared it to be a separate country.

this is a recovery of a nation that had gone through tremendous onomic chaos and they were vulnerable and austria was powerless to stand in the way. march 12 is the day the flow of he nazis went into austria and vienna. and now think of this. in the spring of 1938, troops come into austria without firing a shot. now they did fire some shots in georgia and a lot of shots in georgia and people were killed and a number of people were killed. but we are back in 1938. spring of 1938, austria taken over by the nazis.

hitler is threatening that they need to come into the similar fashion. chamberlain, the failed peacemaker, flew to munich to meet with hitler and made the munich agreement with hitler and signed off on it and got a letter that said we are going to have peace if you give me the german-speaking area which was the western area of the czechs h czech. that was september 29, 1938 when chamberlain met with hitler in munich. he had a press conference on the air strip on september 30, 1938 and said peace for our time.

we remember it peace in our time. but he waved the letter and did the press conference and let all of thening land and free world know that hitler didn't have any designs on any real estate or any part of europe. that he was going to be happy with what he achieved which was austria and the western perimeter. peace for our time. after that peace conference. chamberlain went to bed thinking he accomplished something and the following day the nazis flowed in. and as they stayed and occupied throughout the winter in 1938 and spring of 1939, by march 16, the nazi troops flowed through the balance of the czech republic and occupied it. you think we were going to have peace through our time. hitler didn't announce his

planned operations. he had been announcing he was peaceful. he signed the letter. it was curious. the on soviets signed that they would respect the territorial boundries. and kept that deal until it was suitable with the russians and it means nothing to putin if they have territorial greed. and so putin, in a very similar fashion to hitler, went into crimea and took the crimea over. he had a plan and strategized. i would like to think that our intelligence predicted this as a strategic move. bution that. and probably will never know that if that was dial logged to

the pell that were waveping. when hitler went in and we had the summer of 1939, wondering but not intensively, peace in europe again. land for peace. worked out pretty well. and yet, september 1, 1939, hitler invaded poland. he had cut a deal with the russians that they were going to carve poland up. took the russians 12 days to start carving up their part of poland. zkreig of hed a blit poland and poland was carved up. that cost the line. that did launch world war ii in a formal fashion. and so as the western world began to mobilize for a world

they hope to never see fought and weren't prepared for, the following spring, in april of 940, the nazis invaded norway. 1938, they invaded greece and norway. they had the strategy put in place and by april 13, they had gone through -- by april 13, 1940, and short two year period of tife, poland and norway and greece and yugoslavia sclaff yeah by april 136, 1940. this was a dramatic take over of real state and property and at some point hitler no longer had to put up the pretense because the war was declared after september 1, 1939.

. these were changes that -- change this is a took place across europe. they were cultural clashes that came to a head in that part of the world. we think it can't happen again or won't happen again. we fought the cold war for 39 years, the berlin wall went down and marcy kaptur went over and chiseled a piece out with her own hand, i learned that tonight. i'm proud of her and impressed that she went over there and did that, that she knew what that meant then. we've seen the character and culture under stalin, we've seen under brezhnev, under kruschev, under lenin. a territorial hegemony of the russians and a putin who would like to reconstruct the old

soviet union and do so by military conquest. that's what we have in the crimea. i don't have any doubt he's looking again at the ukraine. i'll go through the country this is a fell at the beginning of world war i, i've taken through through austin korea, czechoslovakia and poland, carved up by russia and the naught sees, they made a deal, a cold and cruel agreement to carve poland up and they executed a lot of jews, they executed a lot of poles, just for being jews and poles. history mark this is a kind of brutality on both sides of that line that came in to poland. i recall meeting in germany a few years ago with some leaders in that part of the world and a gentleman who was sitting next to me at a dinner table, we got into a conversation about the same age, what did our parents do in the second world war, mr. speaker.

his ened as he told me father fought at austria. he said he fought in the -- at arbwiths he said he fought in the russian invasion of auschwitz when the russians invaded poland if the east and invaded an occupied, auschwitz was part of what the russians carved out. it was quite a thing to listen to that kind of narrative, clear over on the east side of a line we didn't think about enough throughout that course of history, there were people in invading armies that were tonched in september of 1939 go and take a free country of poland and carve it up and a cold-blooded, greedy way to latch on to the property of poland. so the pat certain there. and they're on this together. and they're staring each other down across this line. but it takes us through 1939,

into 1940's, when -- into 1940 when norway and greece were occupied along with yugoslavia, then on 10th of may, the nazi panzer divisions rolled through belgium into france. belgium lasted about 18 days when they surrendered, france lasted until about the 22nd of june. paris capitulated and surrendered on june 14rks the plans of france was handed over under nazi control with vichy cooperation as late as june 22 of 1940. now that's -- and then the battle of britain began. that was fought over the english channel, much of it, over the land area of great britain. that essentially ended, you don't know when it ends but looking back on the calendar, it ended late fall of 1940 and we're still not in this war, mr. speaker this country is still

sitting here, watching a lot of the rest of the world engage in the conflict, not that i wanted to be in the conflict earlier than that, but we were neutral though we were trying to help out our allies and help out the what and i'm thinking, are the russians look at at the time. they're wondering, their ally, hitler was not very reliable but they went through 1940 and all the spring of 1941 believing that they had made an agreement to carve up poland and somehow they were going to have a static border between germany and the russians. and they probably believed that, hitler didn't have any -- believed that hitler didn't have further land aspirations either. i bring this up because we should not believe that putin doesn't have further aspirations. hitler did have, june 22, 1941, he launched operation barbaro is a and liberated russia itself

from a treaty to carve up poland to an all-out assault and offensive to invade and occupy russia and nearly got it done that, mr. speaker is a long and complex history that can be read in a book written, the tite of it is, absolute war, written by chris bellamy, it's about 750 page this is a goes through the details, great detail of that operation barbaro is a and the german invasion of russia. that -- and it was of course turned back at stalin grad. while that went on, it was easy to see that hitler was planning the invasion of russia far long, long time. he was retrofitting his rail cars to go on the different gaming rails as they were sending men and equipment into russia and he had an agreement with the russians that they were going to send him the thing he is needed, raw materials and

feed grains and the raw materials that they could use and that they needed badly in germany in exchange for german engineers going to russia. he had german engineers helping russians develop and build military equipment and munitions, except the german engineers wered orered to slow off the russians and do little to help move them along in their progregs of developing their military capability, all the while, raw materials and food and supplies that hitler need from russia for pouring into germany and becoming part of the resources for the war effort that was about to come. and that came, launched june 22, would have been earlier by about six weeks earlier, if it hadn't been for an uprising revolution in yugoslavia that took five german decisions to go down there to put the revolution down in yugoslavia that ke layed the planned invasion of russia by

hitler from may 12 to june 22 and was likely the difference in whether the nazi troops would have been successful in stalin grad and moscow. but if one today travels to moscow and you land at the airport and take ground travel from the airport, that long high traffic area on into moscow, you'll see just souds of moss -- just outside of moscow a large tank barrier sitting there which marks the furthest most easterly advance of german -- of a german tank that was part of the invasion attempt in moscow. we don't think about how close that came, it came within perhaps weeks of being successful, that difference between the delay of that invasion which would have been scheduled for may 12 that turned out to be june 22, 1941. we don't study this in our history very much, mr. speaker, because we turn our focus to

pearl harbor, december 7 of 1941 and the need and necessity for taos launch a two-front war almost immediately. that conflict set the borders for today. the conflict of the second world -- second world war. i take you through this piece of history and i will be naming some of the country this is a may be target of putin. i take you through this history to get, mr. speaker, people that are page attention to this discussion, to get you to yalta on february 11, 1945. we briefly mentioned it, the gentlelady -- while the gentlelady from ohio had the floor. i think about that meeting between franklin delano roosevelt, joseph stalin, and winston churchill. the three leaders who were the central players in the european at the for the world war ii. and they met at yalta. it's ironic to me that yalta is

in the crimea. putin has annexed not only annexed the crimea, he annexed yalt itself, the very place where those three leaders took a map of the world, of asia and europe and drew a line on that map and west of the line, after the war was over they planned that they would defeat this nazi germany that has marched through these country this is a i have described, they planned to defeat nazi germany, they were going to invade and occupy all of the countries from the east on the russian side from the west, the allied side, who by that time we were -- he was just -- by that time it was just post battle of the bulge which ended ear he end of january in 1945. so they decided they were going to carve up europe if the war ended and vict -- ended in victory for them, the russians were going to take half of

germany, we know where that line was, it became the iron curtain wall and in berlin it became the berlin wall. they were going to take the eastern bloc countries we november -- we know of, poland, czechoslovakia, romaine yow, bulgaria, yugoslavia, those countries, and so that agreement was made at yalta. the agreement was agreed to by churchill and roosevelt and by stalin. and then it collapsed in, it collapsed in on germany, carved that part of the world up according to the plan at yalta. can you imagine, mr. speaker, sitting at yalta in the crimea with a map of the world and drawing on that map, this is the line east of which people will live under the soviet influence which hadn't technically formed yet and west of the line people will live under wench influence

and even carved up berlin itself, we had a u.s. sector a french sector a british sector and a russian sector of berlin itself. that set the destiny far lot of history that was to come after that but what he saw happen over the course of 45 years of cold war, mr. speaker, was that these countries that had been taken over by russia and some of them were mostly within the sphere but i will say the countries that are eastern bloc satellites of the soviet union occupy and influenced by -- occupied and influenced by them, hungary, georgia, the crimea, ukraine, estonia, latvia, poland, bulgaria, romain yarks the czech republic and now the slovak republic, croatia, austria, belarus, to name some, to leave some out but get most of them,

these are countries that are now on putin's list he puts crimea in his little pocket and says, i've got that, i'm going to hold it. not many people in this country can device a plan to get it back. he's got parts of georgia in his hand. if we don't step up our resources so that there is a deterrent in place, this man putin will march on down the line. i believe he'll march into eastern ukraine, i believe that some of those operations could be going on now. i think he'll be looking very closely at estonia, latvia, lithuania. members of nato. member countries that we're pledged to defend. but i think that putin looks in the eyes of our commander in chief and wonders how much resolve is actually there. and i think he concluded that the resolve wasn't there, that's one of the contributing factor this is a putin went into the

crimea. i -- this is one of the contributing factors that putin went into the crimea. i suspect if this has been stronger president, it's less likely if we had a stronger president. now the countries that are along that perimeter that see russia on their border and they see what's happened with troops marching into the crimea and they see the threat that the balance of the ukraine is under, they see what's happened in georgia, and by the way, the amount of georgia that remains as sovereign is a fairly large share of their original real estate, they're the furthest most eastern most outpost in georgia, they have a strong spirit they love freedom they love free enterprise and they love america. that's the case for a lot of countries up and down in that part of the world. we need a stronger presence in each one of those. we need stoff a strong -- we need to have a stronger force

lined up, i recall the poles and checks, under the bush administration, we had negotiated the placement of missiles and radar in poland and czechoslovakia, respectively and shortly after our president was elected, mr. speaker, he canceled the agreement to place the missiles and the radar in those two countries. the headlines in the warsaw paper they found out about this in the news. it wasn't the president calling them up and saying, listen, i'm not going to follow through on this. they found out about it in the news. and the headlines in the warsaw paper read one word, betrayed. the united states agreement with the poles and the czechs was a betrayal of our word and it's because putin influenced barack obama into pulling -- into canceling the agreement to establish the missiles and the radar in poland