Last year, on March 23, 2015, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed H. Res. 162 “calling on the president to provide Ukraine with military assistance to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.” The vote was 348 for and 48 against.
The text of the resolution noted “the House of Representatives strongly urges the president to fully and immediately exercise the authorities provided by Congress to provide Ukraine with lethal defensive weapon systems to enhance the ability of the people of Ukraine to defend their sovereignty from the unprovoked and continuing aggression of the Russian Federation. …the existence of an independent, democratic and prosperous Ukraine is in the national interests of the United States” and “the Russian Federation under President Vladimir Putin has engaged in relentless political, economic and military aggression to subvert the impendence and violate the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
The resolution also referred to the Ukraine Freedom Support Act that was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 18, 2014, and noted that U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey had both expressed their inclination to support providing weapons to Ukraine.
The resolution also underscored “the illegal and forcible occupation of Crimea by Russian military and security forces” and “the establishment and control of violent separatist proxies in other areas of Ukraine.”
H. Res. 162 was sponsored by Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) and had 12 co-sponsors: Reps. Edward Royce (R-Calif.), Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Mac Thornberry (R-Texas), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), Sander Levin (D-Mich.), Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.), Michael Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Kay Granger (R-Texas) and William Keating (D-Mass.).
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), following the resolution’s passage by Congress, stated: “The House reflected the will of the people again today in passing a bipartisan call-to-action to help the Ukrainian people. There is an overwhelming support for sending military aid to help address the crisis in Ukraine. Without action for this administration, Russia’s aggression will continue to be left unchecked. While Congress has already provided the White House with the authorities, resources and political support to aid the government and people of Ukraine, today’s vote is yet another sign that the American people support action to help our ally. I applaud the Foreign Affairs Committee for its work, and I hope the president will take action and reassure our friends and allies that we stand behind them.”
Source: “House resolution supports lethal weapons systems to aid Ukraine’s defense,” The Ukrainian Weekly, March 29, 2915.