ICYMI: Shaheen Helps Lead Bipartisan Resolution Marking 1st Anniversary of Vladimir Kara-Murza’s Unjustified Arrest and Detention

(Washington, D.C.) - U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, recently joined U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-ID), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) to introduce a bipartisan resolution in commemoration of the one-year anniversary of Vladimir Kara-Murza’s arrest. The resolution condemns the inhumane treatment of Kara-Murza, a pro-democracy activist, at the hands of Russian authorities and urges for increased U.S. government support to the Russian opposition. 

“Vladimir Kara-Murza has sat in a Russian jail for a year, enduring horrific conditions because he dared to speak out against Putin’s unprovoked war in Ukraine. Kara-Murza's unjust arrest and imprisonment is a fate shared by many other political prisoners by Putin’s hands and are solemn reminders of the extreme actions Russia will take to silence those in opposition. It cannot be lost that this anniversary comes only weeks after Putin illegally arrested a U.S. journalist – Evan Gershkovich – on falsified claims. I stand with lawmakers spanning the political spectrum in condemning this illegal and provocative action and call for his immediate release,” said Senator Shaheen. “This resolution is a symbolic message to the world that we have not forgotten Vladimir or any of the political prisoners who’ve bravely put their lives and freedom on the line to speak truth to power. We must match our words with action and use every diplomatic tool to secure the freedom of Gershkovich, Paul Whalen and other Americans held against their will, and to punish Putin for his human rights abuses against his own people, including Kara-Murza, Alexei Navalny and all Russian activists demanding a freer future for their country.” 

Russian opposition leader and journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza has survived two attempted assassinations via poisoning and now faces up to 25 years in prison on false charges. Kara-Murza, a staunch pro-democracy and human rights leader, has repeatedly advocated for free speech in his homeland and opposed Vladimir Putin’s unjustified invasion of Ukraine. 

Full text of the resolution can be found here. 

Senator Shaheen has led efforts to hold Russia accountable for its aggression through her role on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. She was sanctioned by the Kremlin in 2017 for her outspoken criticism against Russia. Shaheen has repeatedly pushed for Kara-Murza's release and accountability for Russian officials complicit in his poisoning and jailing, sending a letter last year with a bipartisan group of Senators that called for Magnitsky law-related sanctions against those individuals. She has long been an advocate for political prisoners being unjustly detained, including calling for an international response to Russia’s mistreatment of Alexei Navalny.  

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