104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3564

AN ACT

To amend the NATO Participation Act of 1994 to

democracies in Central and Eastern Europe.North Atlantic Treaty Organization of emergingexpedite the transition to full membership in the
104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3564

AN ACT

To amend the NATO Participation Act of 1994 to expedite

the transition to full membership in the North Atlantic

Treaty Organization of emerging democracies in Central

and Eastern Europe.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘NATO Enlargement

3 Facilitation Act of 1996’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 The Congress makes the following findings:

6 (1) Since 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Or7 ganization (NATO) has played an essential role in

8 guaranteeing the security, freedom, and prosperity

9 of the United States and its partners in the Alliance.

10 (2) The NATO Alliance is, and has been since

11 its inception, purely defensive in character, and it

12 poses no threat to any nation. The enlargement of

13 the NATO Alliance to include as full and equal

14 members emerging democracies in Central and East15 ern Europe will serve to reinforce stability and secu16 rity in Europe by fostering their integration into the

17 structures which have created and sustained peace

18 in Europe since 1945. Their admission to NATO

19 will not threaten any nation. America’s security,

20 freedom, and prosperity remain linked to the secu21 rity of the countries of Europe.

22 (3) The sustained commitment of the member

23 countries of NATO to a mutual defense has made

24 possible the democratic transformation of Central

25 and Eastern Europe. Members of the Alliance can

26 and should play a critical role in addressing the se-
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1 curity challenges of the post-Cold War era and in

2 creating the stable environment needed for those

3 emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Eu4 rope to successfully complete political and economic

5 transformation.

6 (4) The United States continues to regard the

7 political independence and territorial integrity of all

8 emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Eu9 rope as vital to European peace and security.

10 (5) NATO has enlarged its membership on 3

11 different occasions since 1949.

12 (6) Congress has sought to facilitate the further

13 enlargement of NATO at an early date by enacting

14 the NATO Participation Act of 1994 (title II of

15 Public Law 103–447; 22 U.S.C. 1928 note) and the

16 NATO Participation Act Amendments of 1995 (sec17 tion 585 of Public Law 104–107).

18 (7) The Partnership for Peace, created in 1994

19 under American leadership, has fostered cooperation

20 between NATO and the countries of Central and

21 Eastern Europe, and offers a path to future mem22 bership in the Alliance and a permanent security re23 lationship between participants in the Partnership

24 for Peace and members of NATO.
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1 (8) As new members of NATO assume the re2 sponsibilities of Alliance membership, the costs of

3 maintaining stability in Europe will be shared more

4 widely. The concurrent assumption of greater re5 sponsibility and development of greater capabilities

6 by the European members of NATO in pursuit of a

7 European security and defense identity will further

8 reinforce burdensharing. Facilitation of the enlarge9 ment process will require current members of

10 NATO, and the United States in particular, to dem11 onstrate the political will needed to build on success12 ful ongoing programs such as the Warsaw Initiative

13 and the Partnership for Peace by making available

14 the resources necessary to supplement efforts pro15 spective new members are themselves undertaking.

16 (9) New members will be full members of the

17 Alliance, enjoying all rights and assuming all the ob18 ligations under the Washington Treaty.

19 (10) In order to assist emerging democracies in

20 Central and Eastern Europe that have expressed in21 terest in joining NATO to be prepared to assume

22 the responsibilities of NATO membership, the Unit23 ed States should encourage and support efforts by

24 such countries to develop force structures and force

25 modernization priorities that will enable such coun-
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1 tries to contribute to the full range of NATO mis2 sions, including, most importantly, territorial defense

3 of the Alliance.

4 (11) Cooperative regional peacekeeping initia5 tives involving emerging democracies in Central and

6 Eastern Europe that have expressed interest in join7 ing NATO, such as the Baltic Peacekeeping Battal8 ion, the Polish-Lithuanian Joint Peacekeeping

9 Force, and the Polish-Ukrainian Peacekeeping

10 Force, can make an important contribution to Euro11 pean peace and security and international peace12 keeping efforts, can assist those countries preparing

13 to assume the responsibilities of possible NATO

14 membership, and accordingly should receive appro15 priate support from the United States.

16 (12) NATO remains the only multilateral secu17 rity organization capable of conducting effective

18 military operations and preserving security and sta19 bility of the Euro-Atlantic region.

20 (13) NATO is an important diplomatic forum

21 and has played a positive role in defusing tensions

22 between members of the Alliance and, as a result, no

23 military action has occurred between two Alliance

24 member states since the inception of NATO in 1949.
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1 (14) The process of enlarging NATO to include

2 emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Eu3 rope should be a continuing process and progress to4 ward the admission of additional emerging democ5 racies in Central and Eastern Europe will depend on

6 the degree to which these countries meet the criteria

7 set forth in section 203(d)(3) of the NATO Partici8 pation Act of 1994.

9 (15) Protection and promotion of fundamental

10 freedoms and human rights is an integral aspect of

11 genuine security, and in evaluating requests for

12 membership in NATO, the human rights records of

13 the emerging democracies in Central and Eastern

14 Europe should be evaluated in light of the obliga15 tions and commitments of these countries under the

16 Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Dec17 laration of Human Rights, and the Helsinki Final

18 Act.

19 (16) A number of Central and Eastern Euro20 pean countries have expressed interest in NATO

21 membership, and have taken concrete steps to dem22 onstrate this commitment; including their participa23 tion in Partnership for Peace activities.

24 (17) Democratic civilian control of defense

25 forces is an essential element in the process of prep-
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1 aration for those states interested in possible NATO

2 membership.

3 (18) The security and economic stability of the

4 Caucasus region is important to the United States,

5 and the countries of the Caucasus region should not

6 be precluded from future membership in NATO. The

7 United States should continue to promote policies

8 that encourage economic and fiscal reforms, private

9 sector growth, and political reforms in the Caucasus

10 region.

11 (19) In recognition that not all countries which

12 have requested membership in NATO will nec13 essarily qualify at the same pace, the accession date

14 for each new member may vary.

15 (20) The process of NATO enlargement entails

16 the consensus agreement of the governments of all

17 16 NATO members and ratification in accordance

18 with their constitutional procedures.

19 (21) The provision of additional NATO transi20 tion assistance should include those emerging de21 mocracies most ready for closer ties with NATO and

22 should be designed to assist other countries meeting

23 specified criteria of eligibility to move forward to24 ward eventual NATO membership.
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1 (22) Lasting security and stability in Europe

2 requires not only the military integration of emerg3 ing democracies of Central and Eastern Europe into

4 existing European structures, but also the eventual

5 economic and political integration of these countries

6 into existing European structures.

7 (23) The Congress of the United States finds

8 that Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic have

9 made the most progress toward achieving the stated

10 criteria and should be eligible for the additional as11 sistance described in this bill.

12 (24) The evaluation of future membership in

13 NATO for emerging democracies in Central and

14 Eastern Europe should be based on the progress of

15 those nations in meeting criteria for NATO member16 ship, which require enhancement of NATO’s security

17 and the approval of all NATO members.

18 SEC. 3. UNITED STATES POLICY.

19 It should be the policy of the United States—

20 (1) to join with the NATO allies of the United

21 States to adapt the role of the NATO Alliance to the

22 post-Cold War world;

23 (2) to actively assist the emerging democracies

24 in Central and Eastern Europe in their transition so
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1 that such countries may eventually qualify for

2 NATO membership;

3 (3) to ensure that all countries in Central and

4 Eastern Europe are fully aware of the costs and re5 sponsibilities of NATO membership, including the

6 obligation set forth in Article X of the North Atlan7 tic Treaty that new members be able to contribute

8 to the security of the North Atlantic area, and fur9 ther to ensure that all countries admitted to NATO

10 are capable of assuming those costs and responsibil11 ities; and

12 (4) to work to define a constructive and cooper13 ative political and security relationship between an

14 enlarged NATO and the Russian Federation.

15 SEC. 4. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING FURTHER

16 ENLARGEMENT OF NATO.

17 It is the sense of the Congress that in order to pro18 mote economic stability and security in Slovakia, Estonia,

19 Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Albania,

20 Moldova, and Ukraine—

21 (1) the United States should continue to sup22 port the full and active participation of these coun23 tries in activities appropriate for qualifying for

24 NATO membership;
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1 (2) the United States Government should con2 tinue to use all diplomatic means available to press

3 the European Union to admit as soon as possible

4 any country which qualifies for membership; and

5 (3) the United States Government and the

6 North Atlantic Treaty Organization should continue

7 to support military exercises and peacekeeping ini8 tiatives between and among these nations and mem9 bers of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

10 SEC. 5. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING ESTONIA,

11 LATVIA, AND LITHUANIA.

12 In view of the forcible incorporation of Estonia, Lat13 via, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union in 1940 under

14 the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and the refusal of the United

15 States and other countries to recognize that incorporation

16 for over 50 years, it is the sense of the Congress that—

17 (1) Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have valid

18 historical security concerns that must be taken into

19 account by the United States; and

20 (2) Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania should not

21 be disadvantaged in seeking to join NATO by virtue

22 of their forcible incorporation into the Soviet Union.
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1 SEC. 6. DESIGNATION OF COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE FOR NATO

2 ENLARGEMENT ASSISTANCE.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The following countries are des4 ignated as eligible to receive assistance under the program

5 established under section 203(a) of the NATO Participa6 tion Act of 1994 and shall be deemed to have been so

7 designated pursuant to section 203(d) of such Act: Po8 land, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.

9 (b) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE OTHER COUNTRIES

10 NOT PRECLUDED.—The process of enlarging NATO to in11 clude emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Eu12 rope should not stop with the admission of Poland, Hun13 gary, and the Czech Republic as full members of the

14 NATO Alliance. Accordingly, the designation of countries

15 pursuant to subsection (a) shall not be deemed to preclude

16 the designation by the President of other Central and

17 Eastern European countries pursuant to section 203(d)

18 of the NATO Participation Act of 1994 as eligible to re19 ceive assistance under the program established under sec20 tion 203(a) of such Act.

21 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NATO

22 ENLARGEMENT ASSISTANCE.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro24 priated $60,000,000 for fiscal year 1997 for the program

25 established under section 203(a) of the NATO Participa26 tion Act of 1994.
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1 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Of the funds authorized to be

2 appropriated by subsection (a)—

3 (1) not less than $20,000,000 shall be available

4 for the subsidy cost, as defined in section 502(5) of

5 the Credit Reform Act of 1990, of direct loans pur6 suant to the authority of section 203(c)(4) of the

7 NATO Participation Act of 1994 (relating to the

8 ‘‘Foreign Military Financing Program’’);

9 (2) not less than $30,000,000 shall be available

10 for assistance on a grant basis pursuant to the au11 thority of section 203(c)(4) of the NATO Participa12 tion Act of 1994 (relating to the ‘‘Foreign Military

13 Financing Program’’); and

14 (3) not more than $10,000,000 shall be avail15 able for assistance pursuant to the authority of sec16 tion 203(c)(3) of the NATO Participation Act of

17 1994 (relating to international military education

18 and training).

19 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Amounts authorized

20 to be appropriated under this section are authorized to

21 be appropriated in addition to such amounts as otherwise

22 may be available for such purposes.
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1 SEC. 8. REGIONAL AIRSPACE INITIATIVE AND PARTNER2 SHIP FOR PEACE INFORMATION MANAGE3 MENT SYSTEM.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Funds described in subsection (b)

5 are authorized to be made available to support the imple6 mentation of the Regional Airspace Initiative and the

7 Partnership for Peace Information Management System,

8 including—

9 (1) the procurement of items in support of

10 these programs; and

11 (2) the transfer of such items to countries par12 ticipating in these programs, which may include Po13 land, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Esto14 nia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovenia, Albania,

15 Ukraine, and Bulgaria.

16 (b) FUNDS DESCRIBED.—Funds described in this

17 subsection are funds that are available—

18 (1) during any fiscal year under the NATO

19 Participation Act of 1994 with respect to countries

20 eligible for assistance under that Act; or

21 (2) during fiscal year 1997 under any Act to

22 carry out the Warsaw Initiative.

23 SEC. 9. EXCESS DEFENSE ARTICLES.

24 (a) PRIORITY DELIVERY.—Notwithstanding any

25 other provision of law, the delivery of excess defense arti26 cles under the authority of section 203(c) (1) and (2) of
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1 the NATO Participation Act of 1994 and section 516 of

2 the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 shall be given priority

3 to the maximum extent feasible over the delivery of such

4 excess defense articles to all other countries except those

5 countries referred to in section 541 of the Foreign Oper6 ations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appro7 priations Act, 1995 (Public Law 103–306; 108 Stat.

8 1640).

9 (b) COOPERATIVE REGIONAL PEACEKEEPING INITIA10 TIVES.—The Congress encourages the President to pro11 vide excess defense articles and other appropriate assist12 ance to cooperative regional peacekeeping initiatives in13 volving emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Eu14 rope that have expressed an interest in joining NATO in

15 order to enhance their ability to contribute to European

16 peace and security and international peacekeeping efforts.

17 SEC. 10. MODERNIZATION OF DEFENSE CAPABILITY.

18 The Congress endorses efforts by the United States

19 to modernize the defense capability of Poland, Hungary,

20 the Czech Republic, and any other countries designed by

21 the President pursuant to section 203(d) of the NATO

22 Participation Act of 1994, by exploring with such coun23 tries options for the sale or lease to such countries of

24 weapons systems compatible with those used by NATO
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1 members, including air defense systems, advanced fighter

2 aircraft, and telecommunications infrastructure.

3 SEC. 11. TERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.

4 (a) TERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—The eligibility

5 of a country designated pursuant to section 6(a) or pursu6 ant to section 203(d) of the NATO Participation Act of

7 1994 may be terminated upon determination by the Presi8 dent that such country no longer meets the criteria set

9 forth in section 203(d)(3) of the NATO Participation Act

10 of 1994.

11 (b) NOTIFICATION.—At least 15 days before termi12 nating the eligibility of any country pursuant to subsection

13 (a), the President shall notify the congressional commit14 tees specified in section 634A of the Foreign Assistance

15 Act of 1961 in accordance with the procedures applicable

16 to reprogramming notifications under that section.

Passed the House of Representatives July 23, 1996.

Attest:

Clerk.