II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4680 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Jens Stoltenberg, in recognition 

of his contributions to the security, unity, and defense of the North 

Atlantic Treaty Organization. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 11 (legislative day, JULY 10), 2024 

Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. MCCONNELL, Mr. 

CARDIN, Mr. RISCH, Mr. REED, Mr. WICKER, Mr. BENNET, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. COONS, Mr. BOOKER, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, 

Mr. PADILLA, Mr. KAINE, Ms. CANTWELL, Ms. SMITH, Mr. KING, Ms. 

SINEMA, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. 

THUNE, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. MANCHIN, Ms. ERNST, Mr. MORAN, Mr. 

SCOTT of South Carolina, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. FETTERMAN, 

Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. RICKETTS, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. HICKENLOOPER, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. CRAPO, 

Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. 

WELCH, Mr. LUJA ́N, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. 

ROSEN, Mr. TESTER, Mr. WARNER, Mr. WARNOCK, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, 

Mr. CASEY, Ms. HASSAN, Ms. DUCKWORTH, and Mrs. GILLIBRAND) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Jens Stoltenberg, 

in recognition of his contributions to the security, unity, 

and defense of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 

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 ‘‘Secretary General Jens 

3 Stoltenberg Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) Jens Stoltenberg served as the Prime Min7 ister of Norway from 2000 to 2001 and 2005 to 

8 2013. 

9 (2) Norway was a founding member of the 

10 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (referred to in 

11 this Act as ‘‘NATO’’) on April 4, 1949. 

12 (3) As Prime Minister of Norway, Jens 

13 Stoltenberg oversaw Norway’s increased defense 

14 spending levels and the modernization of the Nor15 wegian Armed Forces. 

16 (4) A primary objective of NATO is to provide 

17 security and support to member nations and pro18 mote democratic values to ensure stability and 

19 peace. 

20 (5) Jens Stoltenberg assumed the position of 

21 Secretary General of NATO in October 2014. 

22 (6) The United States was the first NATO 

23 member to support Jens Stoltenberg’s appointment 

24 as Secretary General. 

25 (7) Jens Stoltenberg has led NATO through 

26 significant new investments, reinforced its capabiliVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Aug 15, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4680.IS S4680

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1 ties and enhanced the collective defense of the Alli2 ance. 

3 (8) Jens Stoltenberg has advocated for greater 

4 burden sharing among members of the NATO Alli5 ance, and under his leadership the Alliance will see 

6 23 member countries reach or exceed the 2 percent 

7 defense spending commitment by 2024, compared to 

8 4 member countries in 2014. 

9 (9) Jens Stoltenberg’s commitment to better 

10 burden sharing has resulted in a stronger and more 

11 sustainable Alliance than at any other time in 

12 NATO history. 

13 (10) Under Jens Stoltenberg’s leadership, 

14 NATO has successfully undergone multiple enlarge15 ment periods and has extended membership to Fin16 land, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Sweden. 

17 (11) In addition to bolstering the collective se18 curity of the Alliance, NATO enlargement indicates 

19 that an increasing number of countries are meeting 

20 key benchmarks on the military, political and legal 

21 requirements needed for NATO accession, enhancing 

22 interoperability, defense expenditure and intelligence 

23 sharing among member countries. 

24 (12) Jens Stoltenberg has increased NATO’s 

25 partnerships with Indo-Pacific countries to cooperate 


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1 more closely to address our shared global challenges 

2 including cyber defense, emergency technologies, and 

3 the multitude of challenges posed by the People’s 

4 Republic of China. 

5 (13) Jens Stoltenberg included Indo-Pacific 

6 leaders at NATO summits and traveled to the region 

7 which further cemented these important partner8 ships. 

9 (14) Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of 

10 Ukraine in February 2022, Jens Stoltenberg has led 

11 the Alliance in maintaining unprecedented unity 

12 against Putin’s unprovoked, illegal actions. 

13 (15) Since February 2022, NATO members 

14 have supplied Ukraine with the equipment and re15 sources it needs to defend its democracy and its sov16 ereignty. 

17 (16) Jens Stoltenberg successfully marshaled 

18 political and financial support from Indo-Pacific 

19 partners to support Ukraine, including contributions 

20 of munitions and military equipment and sizeable fi21 nancial contributions to NATO’s Comprehensive As22 sistance Plan Action Trust Fund for Ukraine. 

23 (17) Jens Stoltenberg’s mandate was extended 

24 a total of 4 times with unanimous support by NATO 


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1 allies, with 2 extensions agreed to following Russia’s 

2 unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. 

3 (18) Jens Stoltenberg is the second longest4 serving Secretary General, serving over 9 years in 

5 this position. 

6 (19) Jens Stoltenberg has re-committed that 

7 the NATO Alliance will stand together against any 

8 threat posed to a NATO member, ensuring contin9 ued peace and stability within NATO territory and 

10 around the world. 

11 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

12 (a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the 

13 House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 

14 of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 

15 award, on behalf of the Congress, of a single gold medal 

16 of appropriate design to Jens Stoltenberg, in recognition 

17 of his contributions to the security, unity, and defense of 

18 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 

19 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the 

20 award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

21 Treasury (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 

22 strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and 

23 inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. The de24 sign shall bear an inscription of the name of Jens 

25 Stoltenberg. 


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1 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

2 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

3 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price 

4 sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor, 

5 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

6 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

7 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—Medals struck under this 

8 Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 

9 31, United States Code. 

10 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of sections 

11 5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals 

12 struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic 

13 items. 

14 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF 

15 SALE. 

16 (a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 

17 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

18 Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be nec19 essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under 

20 this Act. 

21 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALES.—Amounts received from 

22 the sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under sec23 tion 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Pub24 lic Enterprise Fund. 

Æ 


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