Chris Smith: “I want to thank him for his help and the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton], in bringing House Concurrent Resolution…”

“I want to thank him for his help and the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton], in bringing House Concurrent Resolution 145 which calls upon the Russian Government to remove its armed forces from the sovereign nation of Moldova. The Government of the Russian Federation is being called upon to adhere to its agreement of October 21, 1994, with the Moldovan Government and withdraw its military forces and equipment from Moldova within a 3-year timeframe. The resolution further urges the Secretary of State to use every appropriate opportunity and means to secure such removal, urges all of the Moldovan neighbors to recognize the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Moldova and urges the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to continue its efforts in resolving the differences between that country and its neighbors to welcome the offer of the Government of Ukraine to assist in those efforts. Mr. Speaker, very simply, Moldova, a nation which recently celebrated its fifth year of independence, is the last of the New Independent States in which Russian military forces are stationed without a specific agreement with the host government for their deployment.”