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April
2, 2008
Leave Russia
Alone
by Rep. Ron Paul, MD
Before
the US House of Representatives, April 1, 2008:
Statement on H Con Res 154 Expressing concern over
Russian involvement in Alexander Litvinenko's
murder:
Mr. Speaker: I rise in strong opposition to this
ill-conceived resolution. The US House of
Representatives has no business speculating on
guilt or innocence in a crime that may have been
committed thousands of miles outside US territory.
It is arrogant, to say the least, that we presume
to pass judgment on crimes committed overseas about
which we have seen no evidence.
The resolution purports to express concern over
the apparent murder in London of a shadowy former
Russian intelligence agent, Alexander Litvinenko,
but let us not kid ourselves. The real purpose is
to attack the Russian government by suggesting that
Russia is involved in the murder. There is little
evidence of this beyond the feverish accusations of
interested parties. In fact, we may ultimately
discover that Litvinenko's death by radiation
poisoning was the result of his involvement in an
international nuclear smuggling operation, as some
investigative reporters have claimed. The point is
that we do not know. The House of Representatives
has no business inserting itself in disputes about
which we lack information and jurisdiction.
At a time when we should be seeking good
relations and expanded trade with Russia, what is
the benefit in passing such provocative
resolutions? There is none.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter into the
Congressional Record a very
thought-provoking article
by Edward Jay Epstein published recently in the
New York Sun, which convincingly calls into
question many of the assumptions and accusations
made in this legislation. I would encourage my
colleagues to read this article and carefully
consider the wisdom of what we are doing.
Paul
Archive
Dr. Ron Paul is a Republican
member of Congress from Texas.
Because
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