HOUSE RESOLUTION 17

(By Delegates Zukoff, Anderson, Barach, Bates, Boggs, Booth, Bridges, Brown, Burkhammer, Capito, Clark, Conley, Cooper, Criss, Crouse, Dean, Diserio, Doyle, Espinosa, Evans, Fast, Ferrell, Fleischauer, Fluharty, Forsht, Garcia, Gearheart, Graves, Griffith, Hansen, Hanshaw (Mr. Speaker), Hardy, Holstein, Honaker, Hornbuckle, Horst, Hott, Householder, Howell, D. Jeffries, Jennings, J. Kelly, Kimes, Linville, Longanacre, Lovejoy, Mallow, Mandt, Martin, Maynard, Maynor, Milller, Nestor, Pack, Pinson, Pushkin, Queen, Reed, Riley, Rohrbach, Rowan, Rowe, Skaff, Smith, Statler, Steele, Storch, Summers, Sypolt, Thompson, Toney, Tully, Walker, Wamsley, B. Ward, G. Ward, Westfall, Williams, Worrell, Young, and Zatezalo

[March 4, 2022]

Affirming support for Ukrainian sovereignty, the people of Ukraine, and their right to self-determination.

Whereas, Ukraine’s population is overwhelmingly Christian, and the people of West Virginia support their right to continue to practice and spread the Christian faith, free of Russian violence and oppression; and

Whereas, The people of Ukraine and West Virginia have a shared love of freedom, independence, self-determination, and self-governance; and

Whereas, The 43.7 million people of Ukraine share an identity which is distinct and separate from Russia; and

Whereas, Approximately 77.8 percent of the Ukrainian population identify as Ukrainian, and only 17.3 percent of people in Ukraine identify as Russian; and

Whereas, The language, culture, and history of Ukraine is rich and distinct from Russian language, culture, and history; and

Whereas, Ukraine first declared independence from communist Russia in 1918; and

Whereas, Ukraine has enjoyed self-governance since its separation from the Soviet Union in August of 1991; and

Whereas, Ukraine ratified its most recent constitution in June of 1996; and

Whereas, Ukraine is recognized as a democratic republic and is governed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime minister Denys Shmyhal; and

Whereas, The Ukrainian and West Virginian economies are driven by their abundance of natural resources; and

Whereas, The arable land in Ukraine is significantly larger than that in Russia, and should be used and enjoyed by the people of Ukraine, not exploited by the Russian government to expand its own power; and

Whereas, Persistent Russian interference and aggression weaken Ukrainian growth and investments; and

Whereas, Ukraine is the largest Eastern European country, making the retention of its independence from Russia a security interest of the United States and NATO; and

Whereas, A threat to the sovereign borders of Ukraine is a threat to all Western Democracies; and

Whereas, President Putin is an unstable, unpredictable threat to Europe, NATO, and its allies; therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Delegates:

That the House of Delegates stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine in their fight against Russian oppression, aggression, and annexation; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House forward a copy of this Resolution to the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington, DC.