119-s2978

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2978 Reported in Senate

    (RS) ]

<DOC>

 Calendar No. 246
119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 S. 2978

 To provide for the designation of the Russian Federation as a state 
 sponsor of terrorism.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 October 7, 2025

Mr. Graham (for himself, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Britt, and Ms. Klobuchar) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
 Committee on Foreign Relations

 October 30, 2025

 Reported by Mr. Risch, with an amendment
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
 in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To provide for the designation of the Russian Federation as a state 
 sponsor of terrorism.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Designating the Russian 
Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.</DELETED>

<DELETED> Congress finds the following:</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (1) The Russian Federation's aggression in Ukraine 
 has targeted innocent civilians, including children.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (2) The Government of Ukraine estimates that at 
 least 648 Ukrainian children have been killed and at least 
 2,047 Ukrainian children have been wounded since the start of 
 President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine in February 
 2022.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (3) The Government of Ukraine estimates that the 
 Russian Federation has kidnapped, deported, or displaced at 
 least 19,546 Ukrainian children to the Russian Federation, 
 Russian-occupied territories, and other locations since the 
 invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and continues to practice 
 such illegal and inhumane actions.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (4) The Russian Federation has kidnapped, 
 deported, or displaced Ukrainian children as young as a few 
 months to 17 years of age according to reliable 
 reports.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (5) President Putin's regime seeks the 
 ``Russification'' of Ukrainian children through kidnapping, 
 deportation, or displacement to destroy their Ukrainian 
 identity.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (6) Many of these Ukrainian children are forced 
 into ``re-education'' camps or youth paramilitary organizations 
 in the Russian Federation and other locations, with the intent 
 of training them for future deployment as service members in 
 the Russian Armed Forces.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (7) In November 2024, the United Kingdom stated 
 that the Government of the Russian Federation seeks to 
 accomplish ``Russification'' by ``expos[ing] Ukrainian children 
 to a curriculum that rewrites Russian and Ukrainian history, 
 glorifies Russian military actions, promotes allegiance to 
 Russia, and in some cases involves military 
 training''.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (8) Ukraine has made efforts to repatriate these 
 kidnapped and deported children, including during the peace 
 talks that occurred in Istanbul, Turkey in June 2025, where 
 Ukraine presented the Russian delegation with a list of 339 
 names of kidnapped children to return home.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (9) In response to the proposal put forth by 
 Ukraine in Istanbul, Turkey, the Russian delegation, led by 
 Vladimir Medinsky, stated that these children were ``rescued'' 
 by Russian soldiers and dismissed the request.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (10) United States law authorizes the designation 
 of countries as state sponsors of terrorism if they have 
 repeatedly provided support for acts of international 
 terrorism.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (11) Section 2331

    (1) of title 18, United States 
 Code, defines international terrorism as activities that--
 </DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
        (A) involve violent acts or acts 
 dangerous to human life that are a violation of the 
 criminal laws of the United States or of any State, or 
 that would be a criminal violation if committed within 
 the jurisdiction of the United States or of any 
 State;</DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
        (B) appear to be intended--</DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
            (i) to intimidate or coerce a 
 civilian population;</DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
            (ii) to influence the policy of 
 a government by intimidation or coercion; 
 or</DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
            (iii) to affect the conduct of a 
 government by mass destruction, assassination, 
 or kidnapping; and</DELETED>
 <DELETED> ``
            (C) occur primarily outside the 
 territorial jurisdiction of the United States, or 
 transcend national boundaries in terms of the means by 
 which they are accomplished, the persons they appear 
 intended to intimidate or coerce, or the locale in 
 which their perpetrators operate or seek 
 asylum;''.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (12) At the direction of President Putin, the 
 Government of the Russian Federation has promoted, and 
 continues to promote, these acts of international terrorism, 
 including the kidnapping of Ukrainian children, which would 
 constitute a criminal violation if committed within the 
 jurisdiction of the United States.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (13) During the 117th Congress, the Senate 
 unanimously adopted--</DELETED>
 <DELETED>
        (A) Senate Resolution 623, which called 
 for the Secretary of State to designate the Russian 
 Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism; 
 and</DELETED>
 <DELETED>
        (B) Senate Resolution 546, which condemned 
 the actions of the Russian Federation, President Putin, 
 members of the Russian Security Council, the Russian 
 Armed Forces, and Russian military commanders for 
 committing atrocities and alleged war crimes against 
 the people of Ukraine.</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (14) The United States continues to have a range 
 of tools available to hold the Russian Federation accountable 
 for these egregious actions.</DELETED>

<DELETED>

SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AS A STATE 
 SPONSOR OF TERRORISM.</DELETED>

<DELETED>

    (a) Certification.--Not later than 60 days after the 
effective date of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit a 
report to Congress that certifies whether--</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (1) the Ukrainian children who were kidnapped, 
 deported, or forcibly removed from Ukrainian territory or 
 temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory since the Russian 
 Federation's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 have been 
 reunited with their families or guardians in a secure 
 environment; and</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (2) the process of full reintegration of such 
 children into Ukrainian society is underway.</DELETED>
<DELETED>

    (b) Designation.--If the Secretary of State cannot certify 
the actions described in paragraphs

    (1) and

    (2) of subsections

    (a) have 
occurred, the Secretary shall immediately designate the Russian 
Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism pursuant to--</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (1) section 1754
            (c) of the National Defense 
 Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (50 U.S.C. 
 4813
            (c) );</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (2) section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 
 U.S.C. 2780);</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (3) section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2371); and</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (4) any other relevant provision of law.</DELETED>

<DELETED>

SEC. 4. RESCISSION OF THE DESIGNATION OF THE RUSSIAN 
 FEDERATION AS A STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM.</DELETED>

<DELETED> The Secretary of State may rescind the designation 
required under 

section 3

    (b) on or after the date that is 45 days after 
the date on which the Secretary certifies to Congress, pursuant to the 
provision of law under which such designation was made, that--
</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (1) the Government of the Russian Federation--
 </DELETED>
 <DELETED>
        (A) has not provided support for 
 international terrorism during the preceding 3-month 
 period; and</DELETED>
 <DELETED>
        (B) has provided assurances that such 
 government will not support acts of international 
 terrorism in the future;</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (2) all of the children kidnapped, deported, or 
 forcibly transferred from Ukrainian territory or temporarily 
 occupied Ukrainian territory since the Russian Federation's 
 invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 have been reunited with 
 their families and guardians in a secure environment; 
 and</DELETED>
 <DELETED>

    (3) the process of full reintegration of such 
 children into Ukrainian society is underway.</DELETED>

<DELETED>

SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.</DELETED>

<DELETED> This Act shall take effect on the date that is 1 day after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Designating the Russian Federation 
as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

 Congress finds the following:

    (1) The Russian Federation's aggression in Ukraine has 
 targeted innocent civilians, including children.

    (2) The Government of Ukraine estimates that at least 648 
 Ukrainian children have been killed and at least 2,047 
 Ukrainian children have been wounded since the start of 
 President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine in February 
 2022.

    (3) The Government of Ukraine estimates that the Russian 
 Federation has kidnapped, deported, or displaced at least 
 19,546 Ukrainian children to the Russian Federation, Russian-
 occupied territories, and other locations since the invasion of 
 Ukraine in February 2022 and continues to practice such illegal 
 and inhumane actions.

    (4) The Russian Federation has kidnapped, deported, or 
 displaced Ukrainian children as young as a few months old to 17 
 years of age according to reliable reports.

    (5) President Putin's regime seeks the ``Russification'' of 
 Ukrainian children through kidnapping, deportation, or 
 displacement to destroy their Ukrainian identity.

    (6) Many of these Ukrainian children are forced into ``re-
 education'' camps or youth paramilitary organizations in the 
 Russian Federation and other locations, with the intent of 
 training them for future deployment as service members in the 
 Russian Armed Forces.

    (7) In November 2024, the United Kingdom stated that the 
 Government of the Russian Federation seeks to accomplish 
 ``Russification'' by ``expos[ing] Ukrainian children to a 
 curriculum that rewrites Russian and Ukrainian history, 
 glorifies Russian military actions, promotes allegiance to 
 Russia, and in some cases involves military training''.

    (8) Ukraine has made efforts to repatriate these kidnapped 
 and deported children, including during the peace talks that 
 occurred in Istanbul, Turkey in June 2025, where Ukraine 
 presented the Russian delegation with a list of 339 names of 
 kidnapped children to return home.

    (9) In response to the proposal put forth by Ukraine in 
 Istanbul, Turkey, the Russian delegation, led by Vladimir 
 Medinsky, stated that these children were ``rescued'' by 
 Russian soldiers and dismissed the request.

    (10) Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the 
 Russian Federation, the Kremlin has intensified acts of 
 sabotage, assassination, and other kinetic actions against 
 civilian infrastructure and civilians throughout Europe to 
 undermine broader NATO unity and coerce European governments 
 into altering their policies in response to Russia's war in 
 Ukraine.

    (11) A report by the International Centre for Counter-
 Terrorism identified at least 110 kinetic incidents in Europe 
 between January 2022 and July 2025 that are attributable to the 
 Government of the Russian Federation, including a plot to place 
 explosive devices on civilian aircraft in 2024.

    (12) In May 2025, the Independent International Commission 
 of Inquiry on Ukraine concluded that Russian armed forces 
 ``have committed the crimes against humanity of murder and the 
 war crimes of attacking civilians'', by deliberately targeting 
 Ukrainian civilians with drone strikes, and that these attacks 
 had ``the primary purpose to spread terror among the civilian 
 population, in violation of international humanitarian law.''.

    (13) United States law authorizes the designation of 
 countries as state sponsors of terrorism if they have 
 repeatedly provided support for acts of international 
 terrorism.

    (14) Section 2331

    (1) of title 18, United States Code, 
 defines international terrorism as activities that--
 ``
        (A) involve violent acts or acts dangerous to 
 human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of 
 the United States or of any State, or that would be a 
 criminal violation if committed within the jurisdiction 
 of the United States or of any State;
 ``
        (B) appear to be intended--
 ``
            (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian 
 population;
 ``
            (ii) to influence the policy of a 
 government by intimidation or coercion; or
 ``
            (iii) to affect the conduct of a 
 government by mass destruction, assassination, 
 or kidnapping; and
 ``
            (C) occur primarily outside the territorial 
 jurisdiction of the United States, or transcend 
 national boundaries in terms of the means by which they 
 are accomplished, the persons they appear intended to 
 intimidate or coerce, or the locale in which their 
 perpetrators operate or seek asylum;''.

    (15) At the direction of President Putin, the Government of 
 the Russian Federation has promoted, and continues to promote, 
 these acts of international terrorism, including the kidnapping 
 of Ukrainian children, the destruction of civilian 
 infrastructure throughout Europe, and the assassination and 
 attempted assassination of civilians and political targets 
 throughout Europe, all of which would constitute criminal 
 violations if committed within the jurisdiction of the United 
 States.

    (16) During the 117th Congress, the Senate unanimously 
 adopted--
        (A) Senate Resolution 623, which called for the 
 Secretary of State to designate the Russian Federation 
 as a state sponsor of terrorism; and
        (B) Senate Resolution 546, which condemned the 
 actions of the Russian Federation, President Putin, 
 members of the Russian Security Council, the Russian 
 Armed Forces, and Russian military commanders for 
 committing atrocities and alleged war crimes against 
 the people of Ukraine.

    (17) The United States continues to have a range of tools 
 available to hold the Russian Federation accountable for these 
 egregious actions.

SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AS A STATE SPONSOR OF 
 TERRORISM.

    (a) Certification.--Not later than 60 days after the effective date 
of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to Congress 
that certifies whether--

    (1) the Ukrainian children who were kidnapped, deported, or 
 forcibly removed from Ukrainian territory or temporarily 
 occupied Ukrainian territory since the Russian Federation's 
 invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 have been reunited with 
 their families or guardians in a secure environment;

    (2) the process of full reintegration of such children into 
 Ukrainian society is underway; and

    (3) the Government of the Russian Federation has ceased--
        (A) its attacks against European civilian 
 infrastructure and assassination attempts on political 
 targets; and
        (B) all attacks on civilians and civilian 
 infrastructure in Ukraine.

    (b) Designation.--If the Secretary of State cannot certify that all 
of the actions described in paragraphs

    (1) ,

    (2) , and

    (3) of subsection

    (a) have occurred, the Secretary shall immediately designate the 
Russian Federation as a state sponsor of terrorism pursuant to--

    (1) section 1754
            (c) of the National Defense Authorization 
 Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (50 U.S.C. 4813
            (c) );

    (2) section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 
 2780);

    (3) section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
 U.S.C. 2371); and

    (4) any other relevant provision of law.

SEC. 4. RESCISSION OF THE DESIGNATION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AS A 
 STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM.

 The Secretary of State may rescind the designation required under 

section 3

    (b) on or after the date that is 45 days after the date on 
which the Secretary certifies to Congress, pursuant to the provision of 
law under which such designation was made, that--

    (1) the Government of the Russian Federation--
        (A) has not provided support for international 
 terrorism during the preceding 3-month period; and
        (B) has provided assurances that such government 
 will not support acts of international terrorism in the 
 future;

    (2) all of the children kidnapped, deported, or forcibly 
 transferred from Ukrainian territory or temporarily occupied 
 Ukrainian territory since the Russian Federation's invasion of 
 Ukraine in February 2022 have been reunited with their families 
 and guardians in a secure environment; and

    (3) the process of full reintegration of such children into 
 Ukrainian society is underway.

SEC. 5. LIMITATION.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 
blocked or immobilized Russian sovereign asset (as defined in 

section 2

    (6) of the REPO for Ukrainians Act (division F of Public Law 118-50 
(22 U.S.C. 9521 note))) shall be subject to attachment in aid of 
execution or execution of any judgment entered by a court of the United 
States against the Russian Federation arising from its designation as a 
state sponsor of terrorism pursuant to 

section 3

    (b) .

    (b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be construed 
to limit the rights of victims of terrorism to seek compensation from 
other sources available under law.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

 This Act shall take effect on the date that is 1 day after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
 Calendar No. 246

119th CONGRESS

 1st Session

 S. 2978

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To provide for the designation of the Russian Federation as a state 
 sponsor of terrorism.

_______________________________________________________________________

 October 30, 2025

 Reported with an amendment