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87–671PDF 2003

COMMENDING THE SIGNING OF THE UNITED

STATES ADRIATIC CHARTER

MARKUP

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPE

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON 

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

ON

H. Con. Res. 209

JUNE 11, 2003

Serial No. 108–24

Printed for the use of the Committee on International Relations

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.house.gov/international—relations 

(II)

COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 

HENRY J. HYDE, Illinois, Chairman 

JAMES A. LEACH, Iowa 

DOUG BEREUTER, Nebraska 

CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey, 

Vice Chairman 

DAN BURTON, Indiana 

ELTON GALLEGLY, California 

ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida 

CASS BALLENGER, North Carolina 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

EDWARD R. ROYCE, California 

PETER T. KING, New York 

STEVE CHABOT, Ohio 

AMO HOUGHTON, New York 

JOHN M. MCHUGH, New York 

THOMAS G. TANCREDO, Colorado 

RON PAUL, Texas 

NICK SMITH, Michigan 

JOSEPH R. PITTS, Pennsylvania 

JEFF FLAKE, Arizona 

JO ANN DAVIS, Virginia 

MARK GREEN, Wisconsin 

JERRY WELLER, Illinois 

MIKE PENCE, Indiana 

THADDEUS G. MCCOTTER, Michigan 

WILLIAM J. JANKLOW, South Dakota 

KATHERINE HARRIS, Florida 

TOM LANTOS, California 

HOWARD L. BERMAN, California 

GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York 

ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American 

Samoa 

DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey 

ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey 

SHERROD BROWN, Ohio 

BRAD SHERMAN, California 

ROBERT WEXLER, Florida 

ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 

WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts 

GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York 

BARBARA LEE, California 

JOSEPH CROWLEY, New York 

JOSEPH M. HOEFFEL, Pennsylvania 

EARL BLUMENAUER, Oregon 

SHELLEY BERKLEY, Nevada 

GRACE F. NAPOLITANO, California 

ADAM B. SCHIFF, California 

DIANE E. WATSON, California 

ADAM SMITH, Washington 

BETTY MCCOLLUM, Minnesota 

CHRIS BELL, Texas 

THOMAS E. MOONEY, SR., Staff Director/General Counsel 

ROBERT R. KING, Democratic Staff Director 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPE

DOUG BEREUTER, Nebraska, Chairman 

DAN BURTON, Indiana 

ELTON GALLEGLY, California 

PETER T. KING, New York 

JO ANN DAVIS, Virginia 

THADDEUS G. McCOTTER, Michigan 

WILLIAM J. JANKLOW, South Dakota 

ROBERT WEXLER, Florida 

ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 

WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts 

BARBARA LEE, California 

JOSEPH M. HOEFFEL, Pennsylvania 

EARL BLUMENAUER, Oregon 

VINCE MORELLI, Subcommittee Staff Director 

PATRICK PRISCO, Professional Staff Member 

JONATHAN KATZ, Democratic Professional Staff Member 

BEVERLY HALLOCK, Staff Associate 

(III)

C O N T E N T S 

Page

MARKUP OF 

H. Con. Res. 209, Commending the signing of the United States-Adriatic 

Charter, a charter of partnership among the United States, Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia ............................................................................................. 2

LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD 

The Honorable Doug Bereuter, a Representative in Congress from the State 

of Nebraska, and Chairman, Subcommittee on Europe: Prepared statement 6

The Honorable Eliot L. Engel, a Representative in Congress from the State 

of New York: Prepared statement ...................................................................... 8

(1)

COMMENDING THE SIGNING OF THE UNITED 

STATES ADRIATIC CHARTER 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2003

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPE, 

COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 3:23 p.m. in Room 

2172, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Doug Bereuter [Chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding. 

Mr. BEREUTER. The Subcommittee meeting will come to order. 

Pursuant to notice, I call up the resolution, H. Con. Res. 209, for 

purposes of a markup. And as soon as our Clerk gets there, we will 

be okay, and she is working her way there. 

The CLERK. H. Con. Res. 209, commending the signing of the 

United States Adriatic Charter, a charter of partnership——

Mr. BEREUTER. Without objection, the resolution will be considered as read and open for amendments at any point. 

[H. Con. Res. 209 follows:]

2

1

IV

108TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 209

Commending the signing of the United States-Adriatic Charter, a charter

of partnership among the United States, Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 5, 2003

Mr. ENGEL (for himself, Mr. BEREUTER, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. KIRK, Mrs.

KELLY, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, and Mr. SHIMKUS) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the

Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Commending the signing of the United States-Adriatic Charter, a charter of partnership among the United States,

Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia.

Whereas the United States has an enduring interest in the

independence, territorial integrity, and security of Albania, Croatia, and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and supports their full integration in the community of democratic Euro-Atlantic states;

Whereas Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia have taken clear

and positive steps to advance their integration into Europe by establishing close cooperative relations among

themselves and with their neighbors, as well as their promotion of regional cooperation;


87671a.AAB
3

2

•HCON 209 IH

Whereas Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia have already contributed to European security and to the peace and security of southeast Europe through the resolution of conflicts in the region and their regional cooperation in the

Southeast Europe Defense Ministerial;

Whereas on May 2, 2003, the United States-Adriatic Charter

was signed in Tirana, Albania, by Secretary of State

Colin Powell, Albanian Foreign Minister Ilir Meta, Croatian Foreign Minister Tonino Picula, and Macedonian

Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva;

Whereas the Adriatic Charter affirms the commitment of Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia to the values and principles of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

and to joining the Alliance at the earliest possible time;

Whereas Secretary of State Powell stated that the Adriatic

Charter ‘‘reaffirms our partners’ dedication to work individually, with each other, and with their neighbors to

build a region of strong democracies powered by free

market economies . . . [i]t underscores the importance we

place on their eventual full integration into NATO and

other European institutions . . . [a]nd most importantly,

the Charter promises to strengthen the ties that bind the

peoples of the region to the United States, to one another, and to a common future within the Euro-Atlantic

family’’; and

Whereas 75 commandos of the armed forces of the Republic

of Albania were sent to Iraq as part of the coalition

forces during Operation Iraqi Freedom as a sign of its

commitment to promote international freedom and security: Now, therefore, be it


87671a.AAC
4

3

•HCON 209 IH

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That Congress—

3 (1) strongly supports the United States-Adriatic

4 Charter and commends Albania, Croatia, and Mac5 edonia for their continued efforts to become full6 fledged members of the North Atlantic Treaty Orga7 nization (NATO) and the European Union;

8 (2) urges NATO to invite Albania, Croatia, and

9 Macedonia to join NATO as soon as these countries

10 demonstrate the ability to assume the responsibilities

11 of NATO membership;

12 (3) welcomes and supports the aspirations of

13 Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia to join the Euro14 pean Union at the earliest opportunity;

15 (4) recognizes that Albania, Croatia, and Mac16 edonia are making important strides to bring their

17 economic, military, and political institutions into

18 conformance with the standards of NATO and other

19 Euro-Atlantic institutions; and

20 (5) commends Secretary of State Powell for his

21 personal support of the Adriatic Charter.

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87671a.AAD
5

Mr. BEREUTER. I have an opening statement. The resolution before us expresses the support of Congress for the Adriatic Charter. 

The charter was signed on May 2, 2003 in the Albanian capital of 

Tirana by Secretary of State Powell and the foreign ministers of Albania, Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the 

three remaining NATO aspirant countries which were not invited 

to begin accession negotiations with the Alliance at the 2002 

Prague Summit. 

I thank my colleague, the distinguished gentleman from New 

York, Mr. Engel, for authoring this legislation and for working with 

the Subcommittee staff and me. Mr. Engel has long been a champion of Albania in the House and Albania-American relations, and 

the Adriatic Charter represents one more step for Albania as well 

as for Croatia and Macedonia in their journey toward full membership in Euro-Atlantic institutions like NATO and the European 

Union. 

The Adriatic Charter pledges the United States to support efforts 

by Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to join NATO and other EuroAtlantic institutions. In this agreement the three aspirant nations 

commit themselves to accelerate their democratic reforms, protect 

human rights, implement market-oriented economic policies and 

enhance their mutual cooperation. 

Under the Adriatic Charter, the United States and these three 

countries pledge to consult whenever the security of one of them is 

threatened. For their part, the aspirant countries promise to continue defense reforms and undertake steps to enhance border security so they can contribute to regional stability. This is a very important step forward. 

Some of the language in the Adriatic Charter might look familiar. Indeed, this document was based on the successful Baltic Charter, which was signed in 1998 with Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. 

Five years ago few observers would have been so bold as to predict 

that those three countries, occupied for 50 years by the Soviet 

Union and then Russia, would be poised to join NATO and the EU 

next year. 

The Baltic Charter signifies an American commitment to help 

those three countries in their successful efforts to join NATO and 

the EU. Today the Adriatic Charter holds the potential for helping 

Albania, Croatia and Macedonia achieve the same goals. 

I would like to recognize the efforts of Secretary of State Powell 

and our diplomats working in the European and Eurasian Bureau 

of the State Department for their initiative in crafting the Adriatic 

Charter. As NATO prepares to admit seven new countries next 

year, it is important that these three remaining candidate countries are not forgotten. NATO’s door remains open to all who are 

willing and able to assume the responsibilities of membership, and 

it is important that the Congress assert that it is the achievements 

of Albania, Croatia and Macedonia that will determine when their 

aspirations for accession will be realized. 

The Adriatic Charter is also one more step toward President 

Bush’s goal of a Europe whole and free from the Baltic to the Black 

Sea. I commend and congratulate the people of Albania, Croatia 

and Macedonia for their initiative and progress, and I urge approve 

of this resolution. 

6

And I am pleased now to turn to the Ranking Member, Mr. 

Wexler, and perhaps then to the initiator of the legislation. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Bereuter follows:]

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE DOUG BEREUTER, A REPRESENTATIVE IN

CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEBRASKA, AND CHAIRMAN, SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPE

The resolution before us expresses the support of the Congress for the Adriatic 

Charter. The charter was signed on May 2, 2003, in the Albanian capital of Tirana 

by Secretary of State Powell and the foreign ministers of Albania, Croatia, and the 

former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the three remaining NATO aspirant nations, which were not invited to begin accession negotiations with the Alliance at 

the 2002 Prague Summit. 

I thank my colleague, the distinguished gentleman from New York, Mr. Engel, for 

authoring this legislation and for working with the subcommittee staff and me. 

Mr. Engel has long been a champion of Albania in this House, and the Adriatic 

Charter represents one more step for Albania, as well as for Croatia and Macedonia, 

in their journey toward full membership in Euro-Atlantic institutions like NATO 

and the European Union. 

The Adriatic Charter pledges the United States to support efforts by Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to join NATO and other Euro-Atlantic institutions. In this 

agreement, the three aspirant nations commit themselves to accelerate their democratic reforms, protect human rights, implement market-oriented economic policies, 

and enhance their mutual cooperation. 

Under the Adriatic Charter, the United States and these three countries pledge 

to consult whenever the security of one of them is threatened. For their part, the 

aspirant countries promise to continue defense reforms and undertake steps to enhance border security, so they can contribute to regional stability. 

Some of the language in the Adriatic Charter might look familiar. Indeed, this 

document was based on the successful Baltic Charter, which was signed in 1998 

with Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Five years ago, few observers would have been 

so bold as to predict that those three countries, occupied for 50 years by the Soviet 

Union, would be poised to join NATO and the EU next year. 

The Baltic Charter signified an American commitment to help those three countries in their successful efforts join NATO and the EU. Today, the Adriatic Charter 

holds the potential of helping Albania, Croatia and Macedonia achieve the same 

goals. 

I would like to recognize the efforts of Secretary of State Powell and of our diplomats working in the European and Eurasian bureau of the State Department for 

their initiative in crafting the Adriatic Charter. As NATO prepares to admit seven 

new countries next year, it is important that the three remaining candidate countries not be forgotten. NATO’s door remains open to all who are willing and able 

to assume the responsibilities of membership, and it is important that the Congress 

assert that it is the achievements of Albania, Croatia and Macedonia that will determine when their aspirations for accession will be realized. 

The Adriatic Charter is also one more step toward President Bush’s goal of a Europe whole and free from the Baltic to the Black Sea. I commend and congratulate 

the people of Albania, Croatia and Macedonia for their initiative and progress, and 

I urge approval of this resolution.

Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Wexler. 

Mr. WEXLER. I will defer to Mr. Engel. 

Mr. BEREUTER. Very well. Mr. Engel, you are recognized and 

thank you for your initiative. 

Mr. ENGEL. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to thank 

both you and your staff for your cooperation and support as we 

drafted this resolution, and I would also like to thank Mr. Wexler 

for his support and cooperation. 

On May 2, 2003, the USA Adriatic Charter was signed in Tirana, 

Albania by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the foreign ministers of Albania, Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of 

Macedonia. As Secretary Powell pointed out when he signed the 

document, the fact that the agreement was signed in Albania, once 

7

a country known only for its isolation and distance from Western 

principles, is remarkable. 

Today Tirana is a capital filled with energy as it continues its 

opening to Europe. I recall the first time I went to Tirana in 1992 

I didn’t know what to expect, because I had known that the people 

of Albania had been fed a steady diet of anti-American propaganda 

with the previous regimes, a dictatorship for so many years, and 

instead I found people that were cheering in the streets and shouting USA, USA, and I have always said that of all the peoples I 

have met all over the world, there are no people that are more proAmerican than the Albanian people, be it whether they are in Albania, Kosova, Macedonia, Montenegro or in the United States. 

Macedonia and Croatia have seen similar changes as Albania 

has, filled with energy, and continues its opening to Europe. As 

NATO has expanded to other countries of Europe, several former 

Yugoslav nations in South Central Europe were excluded. They 

just were not ready for membership. Today three of those nations, 

Albania, Croatia and Macedonia, are moving to make the needed 

changes and reforms so that all three can join the North Atlantic 

structures. 

The United States-Adriatic Charter represents a commitment by 

these three countries, Albania, Croatia and Macedonia, to the values and principles of NATO and a declaration of their intent to join 

NATO as soon as they meet alliance standards. I strongly support 

their efforts to advance toward NATO membership, and having 

Secretary Powell sign the charter puts the United States firmly in 

support of their efforts to join NATO when they are ready. 

By passing this resolution today, Congress will add its voice by, 

and I quote, urging NATO to invite Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to join NATO as soon as these countries demonstrate the 

ability to assume the responsibilities of NATO membership. 

H. Con. Res. 209 also welcomes and supports the aspirations of 

Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to join the European Union at the 

earliest opportunity and recognizes that the three countries are 

making important strides to bring their economic, military and political institutions into conformance with the standards of NATO 

and other Euro-Atlantic institutions. 

Finally, our resolution also commends Secretary Powell for his 

strong personal support of the resolution, as demonstrated by his 

travel to the region to sign the document. 

Finally, Mr. Chairman, I think that this is an appropriate forum 

to publicly thank Albania for sending 75 commandos to Iraq to 

fight alongside our troops. It is my hope that Albania, one of only 

three European countries to send ground troops, would be high on 

our Defense Department’s list when it considers the realignment of 

and new bases for American forces around the world. 

Again, I want to thank both the Chairman and Ranking Member 

for their support and urge this Subcommittee to adopt this resolution and report it favorably to the Full Committee. And I yield back 

my time. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Engel follows:]

8

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE ELIOT L. ENGEL, A REPRESENTATIVE IN

CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW YORK

Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank you and your staff for your cooperation and 

support as we drafted this resolution, H.Con.Res. 209. I would also like to thank 

the Ranking Member, Mr. Wexler, for his support. 

On May 2, 2003, the U.S. Adriatic Charter was signed in Tirana, Albania by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Foreign Ministers of Albania, Croatia, and the 

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. As Secretary Powell pointed out when he 

signed the document, the fact that the agreement was signed in Albania, once a 

country known only for its isolation and distance from Western principles, is remarkable. Today, Tirana is a capital filled with energy as it continues its opening 

to Europe. Macedonia and Croatia have seen similar changes. 

As NATO has expanded through other countries of Europe, several former Yugoslav nations in South Central Europe were excluded. They just were not ready for 

membership. Today, three of those nations, Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia are 

now moving to make the needed changes and reforms so that they can join the 

North Atlantic structures. 

The U.S. Adriatic Charter represents a commitment by Albania, Croatia, and 

Macedonia to the values and principles of NATO and a declaration of their intent 

to join NATO as soon as they meet Alliance standards. I strongly support their efforts to advance toward NATO membership and having Secretary Powell sign the 

Charter puts the United States firmly in support of their efforts to join NATO when 

they are ready. 

By passing this resolution today, Congress will add its voice, by ‘‘urg[ing] NATO 

to invite Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia to join NATO as soon as these countries 

demonstrate the ability to assume the responsibilities of NATO membership.’’

H.Con.Res. 209 also welcomes and supports the aspirations of Albania, Croatia, 

and Macedonia to join the European Union at the earliest opportunity and recognizes that the three countries are making important strides to bring their economic, 

military, and political institutions into conformance with the standards of NATO 

and other Euro-Atlantic institutions. Finally, our resolution also commends Secretary Powell for his strong personal support of the resolution, as demonstrated by 

his travel to the region to sign the document. 

Finally, Mr. Chairman, I think this is an appropriate forum to publicly thank Albania, for sending 75 commandos to Iraq to fight along side our troops. It is my hope 

that Albania, one of only three European countries to send ground troops, would be 

high on Defense Department’s list when it considers the realignment of and new 

bases for American forces around the world. 

Again, I thank the Chairman and Ranking Member for their support and urge 

the Subcommittee to adopt this resolution and report it favorably to the full committee.

Mr. BEREUTER. Thank you, Mr. Engel. I understand that there 

are no further opening statements. 

Are there any amendments to the resolution? If there are no 

amendments, the Chair would now entertain a motion that the bill 

be reported favorably to the Full Committee. 

Mr. GALLEGLY. So moved. 

Mr. BEREUTER. Thank you, Mr. Gallegly. The question occurs on 

the motion to report H. Con. Res. 209 favorably. All in favor will 

say aye. All opposed, no. The motion is approved. The bill is reported favorably. The staff is directed to make any technical and 

conforming amendments, and I thank my colleagues for their patience and for their assistance in moving this legislation. We will 

try to get it to the Floor as soon as we can. 

The Subcommittee stands adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 3:31 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]

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