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2020 SPECIAL SESSION I

20200471D
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 571
Offered August 26, 2020
Commending Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Semyon Vindman, USA, Ret.
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Patrons-- Torian, Helmer and Levine
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WHEREAS, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Semyon Vindman, USA, Ret., retired from military service in July 2020 after a distinguished 21-year career, including service as Director of European Affairs for the United States National Security Council; and

WHEREAS, born in Ukraine, Alexander Vindman immigrated to the United States with his family and grew up in New York; he attended State University of New York at Binghamton, where he participated in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army after graduation; and

WHEREAS, Alexander Vindman completed foreign deployments to South Korea and Germany and served a tour of duty during the Iraq War, earning a Purple Heart after he was wounded by a roadside bomb in October 2004; he later became a foreign area officer specializing in Eurasia and was assigned to United States embassies in Ukraine and Russia; and

WHEREAS, in 2015, Alexander Vindman achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel and was assigned to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a politico-military affairs officer with a focus on Russia; and

WHEREAS, in July 2018, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman was assigned to the United States National Security Council and participated in high-level policy discussions related to European affairs; and

WHEREAS, later that year, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman testified to members of the United States House Intelligence Committee, the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the House Oversight Committee as part of the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump; and

WHEREAS, at the hearings, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman raised concerns about actions by President Trump and members of the administration that could have jeopardized relations with Ukraine and undermined United States national security; and

WHEREAS, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman was removed from his post at the National Security Council in February 2020 and subsequently retired from the United States Army; and

WHEREAS, over the course of his military career, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman earned the Ranger Tab and the Parachutist Badge, as well as two Defense Meritorious Service Medals, four Army Commendation Medals, and two Army Achievement Medals, among many other awards and decorations; and

WHEREAS, Lieutenant Colonel Vindman served the United States with dedication, distinction, and dignity, making great personal sacrifices to enhance and maintain national security; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, That Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Semyon Vindman, USA, Ret., hereby be commended for his honorable military service and his courageous defense of the nation’s ideals; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Semyon Vindman, USA, Ret., as an expression of the House of Delegates’ admiration for his achievements in service to the nation.