Trahan Votes to Hold Russia Accountable for Heinous War Crimes

Statement

Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) voted in support of the Ukraine Invasion War Crimes Deterrence and Accountability Act, legislation to hold Russia accountable for its heinous war crimes and take steps to ensure that perpetrators can be prosecuted.

"The images we've seen out of Bucha and other liberated Ukrainian communities this week are horrific -- bodies with bound hands, close-range gunshot wounds, and signs of torture and extreme violence. The slaughter of innocent Ukrainian civilians is a heinous crime against humanity, and Vladimir Putin and his armed forces are all responsible," said Congresswoman Trahan. "With today's vote, we're holding Putin accountable for his war crimes and ensuring that he -- and every Russian enabler involved -- can be prosecuted to the fullest extent. We stand with the Ukrainian people as they bravely defend their freedom and democracy against this unprovoked violence, and will continue to do so until their sovereignty is restored."

Specifically, the Ukraine War Crimes Act will require President Biden to provide Congress with a report describing the process through which the federal government will collect, analyze, and preserve evidence of war crimes and other atrocities, as well as the roles various agencies will play to help coordinate such efforts. The report would also detail the process through which a domestic, foreign, or international court or tribunal could request and obtain information related to war crimes or other atrocities from the United States.

The vote comes less than a month after Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed into law $13.6 billion in humanitarian and military assistance for Ukraine and our allied nations responding to the refugee crisis created by Putin's unprovoked attack. Trahan recently returned from a bipartisan Congressional Delegation to the Ukrainian border where she met with refugees fleeing the violence in Ukraine.

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