A bill H.R.1751 entitled “Counteracting Russian Hostilities Act of 2017” has been officially introduced by U.S. Representative Alex Mooney (R-WV). The measure is intended to codify the earlier presidential executive orders imposing sanctions on the Russian Federation in response to the country’s interference with the 2016 U.S. elections, as well as its attempted annexation of Crimea and military aggression in Donbas.

The bill says that no U.S. Federal agency shall take any action or extend any assistance that recognizes or implies any recognition of the de jure or de facto sovereignty of the Russian Federation over Crimea or its airspace or territorial waters.

The bill further states that it is the policy of the United States to ensure that any relevant sanctions relief for the Russian Federation is contingent on the recognition by the Government of the Russian Federation of the sovereignty of Ukraine over Crimea as well as timely, complete, and verifiable implementation of the Minsk agreements, especially the restoration of Ukraine’s control of the entirety of its eastern border with the Russian Federation in the conflict zone.