III 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 552 

Commemorating the fifteenth anniversary of NATO’s invocation of Article 

V to defend the United States following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 12, 2016 

Mr. COONS (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. KAINE, and Mr. MENENDEZ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the fifteenth anniversary of NATO’s invocation of Article V to defend the United States following 

the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. 

Whereas the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), 

the world’s most effective, strongest international political-military alliance, was established in 1949 by the 

North Atlantic Treaty; 

Whereas the principle of collective defense, whereby NATO 

member states agree to mutual defense in response to an 

attack by an external party, is at the very heart of 

NATO’s founding treaty; 

Whereas NATO’s commitment to collective defense is enshrined in Article V of the North Atlantic Treaty, which 


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•SRES 552 IS 

states that ‘‘an armed attack against one’’ NATO member ‘‘shall be considered an attack against them all’’; 

Whereas, on September 11, 2001, the United States was attacked by the al Qaeda terrorist network, headed by 

Osama bin Laden and protected by the Taliban regime 

in Afghanistan; 

Whereas, on September 12, 2001, less than 24 hours after 

the attacks, NATO invoked Article V for the first time 

in history; 

Whereas, in October 2001, NATO launched its first ever 

counterterrorism operation, Operation Active Endeavor, 

to support the United States and safeguard all allies; 

Whereas, from October 2001 to May 2002, as part of Operation Active Endeavor, NATO deployed seven NATO Airborne Warning And Control System (AWACS) Surveillance aircraft to help patrol the skies over the United 

States; 

Whereas 830 crew members from 13 NATO countries flew 

more than 360 sorties to support Operation Eagle Assist 

to protect the United States from further attack; 

Whereas NATO activities under Operation Active Endeavor 

also included NATO ships patrolling the Mediterranean 

and monitoring shipping to help deter, defend, disrupt, 

and protect against terrorist activity; 

Whereas, from 2003 until 2014, NATO commanded the 

International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, tasked with conducting security operations 

throughout the country and helping to build the Afghan 

National Defense and Security Forces; 

Whereas ISAF was the longest, largest, and most challenging 

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prised more than 130,000 troops from 51 NATO and 

partner countries, including at least 40,000 from countries other than the United States; 

Whereas at least 3,519 NATO troops, including 2,383 United 

States troops and more than 1,000 from NATO allies 

and partners, have died fighting in Afghanistan; 

Whereas, in January 2015, in a sign of continued solidarity, 

NATO launched a new mission in Afghanistan, Operation 

Resolute Support, to advise and assist Afghan security 

forces; 

Whereas, as of June 2016, approximately 12,000 NATO personnel were contributing to the Resolute Support Mission, 7,000 of whom are from the United States; 

Whereas, on July 8 and 9, 2016, Heads of State and Government of the 28 NATO allies met in Warsaw, Poland, to 

‘‘ensure that the Alliance remains an unparalleled community of freedom, peace, security, and shared values, including individual liberty, human rights, democracy, and 

the rule of law’’; 

Whereas leaders at the Warsaw Summit decided to— 

(1) strengthen the Alliance’s military presence in 

Eastern Europe with four battalions in Poland, Estonia, 

Latvia, and Lithuania on a rotational basis starting in 

2017; 

(2) develop a tailored forward presence in southeastern Europe; 

(3) strengthen cyber defenses; 

(4) train and build capacity inside Iraq in support 

of the global coalition to defeat the so-called Islamic 

State, including by providing a NATO AWACS SurveilVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:41 Sep 12, 2016 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR552.IS SR552

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lance plane and to expand maritime presence in the Mediterranean Sea; 

(5) continue contributions to NATO’s Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan beyond 2016 and confirm 

funding commitments to 2020; 

(6) welcome Ukraine’s plans for reform and endorse 

a Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine; 

(7) welcome the vital progress made in implementing 

the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package and activating 

the Joint Training and Evaluation Center to strengthen 

Georgia’s self-defense and resilience capabilities; and 

(8) reiterate support for the territorial integrity and 

sovereignty of both Ukraine and Georgia within their 

internationally recognized borders; 

Whereas the NATO alliance has served the interests of the 

United States and its transatlantic allies for more than 

seven decades; 

Whereas, on April 6, 2016, NATO Secretary General Jens 

Stoltenberg stated, ‘‘NATO is a powerful tool in which all 

our nations have made great investments. For almost 

seventy years, NATO has brought Europe and North 

America together. Providing security for both sides of the 

Atlantic. I know that I can count on the continued leadership of the United States. I also know that the mutual 

interests of Europe and the United States are best served 

by a strong North Atlantic Alliance. Because the security 

of Europe and North America is indivisible. And only by 

standing together will we remain safe and secure.’’; and 

Whereas, on July 9, 2016, following the Warsaw Summit, 

President Barack Obama stated, ‘‘NATO is as strong, as 

nimble, and as ready as ever . . . Nobody should ever 

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cused on the future. And just as our nations have stood 

together over the past hundred years, I know that we’ll 

stay united and grow even stronger for another hundred 

more.’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) commemorates the fifteenth anniversary of 

3 NATO’s invocation of Article V to defend the United 

4 States after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 

5 2001; 

6 (2) commends the contributions of our NATO 

7 allies and partners in our common fight against ter8 rorism and in pursuit of international security; 

9 (3) honors those men and women who have died 

10 for the cause of common defense of the North Atlan11 tic Treaty allies; 

12 (4) recommits the United States to the North 

13 Atlantic Treaty, especially to common defense of 

14 Treaty allies, and affirms that the United States re15 mains fully prepared, capable, and willing to honor 

16 its commitments under Article V; 

17 (5) encourages all NATO allies to continue 

18 their valuable contributions to the Alliance, including 

19 by investing at least two percent of gross domestic 

20 product in national defense spending; 

21 (6) commends the NATO Alliance for decisions 

22 taken at the July 2016 Warsaw Summit and the 


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1 President for investing in the European Reassurance 

2 Initiative to enhance deterrence and project inter3 national stability beyond NATO; and 

4 (7) reaffirms the commitment of the United 

5 States to deterring those who seek to destabilize the 

6 Euro-Atlantic area, and to maintaining an ‘‘Open 

7 Door’’ policy on welcoming new members, and wel8 comes the Alliance’s invitation to Montenegro. 

Æ 


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