IV

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 63

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the 50th anniversary of

the Marshall Plan and reaffirming the commitment of the United States

to the principles that led to the establishment of that program.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 16, 1997

Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mr. GILMAN, Mr. HAMILTON, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr.

BERMAN, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, and Mr. ROTHMAN) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the 50th

anniversary of the Marshall Plan and reaffirming the

commitment of the United States to the principles that

led to the establishment of that program.

Whereas on June 5, 1947, in a speech at Harvard University,

then-Secretary of State George C. Marshall proposed the

establishment of a joint American-European program to

provide assistance, ‘‘so far as it may be practical for us

to do so,’’ to assist the countries of Europe to recover

from the devastation of World War II, and that program

was subsequently called ‘‘The Marshall Plan’’ in recognition of the pivotal role of Secretary of State Marshall in

its establishment;
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HCON 63 IH

Whereas then-President Harry S Truman had earlier enunciated the principle of assisting democratic countries

which faced the threat of communist aggression and thus

laid the foundation for the Marshall Plan with the ‘‘Truman Doctrine’’ which provided economic and military assistance to Greece and Turkey, and this farsighted policy

represented a reversal of longstanding United States policy of avoiding peacetime involvement in foreign military

and political affairs;

Whereas the Marshall Plan was developed, refined, and enacted with the broad bipartisan involvement of the Congress of the United States, including in particular the efforts of Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg of Michigan and

Congressman Christian A. Herter of Massachusetts;

Whereas the Congress provided an estimated

$13,300,000,000 to assist the sixteen European countries

which participated in the Marshall Plan during the fouryear period of its existence, and this material contribution represented a significant sacrifice by the American

people;

Whereas the assistance provided under the Marshall Plan

served to ‘‘prime the pump’’ to stimulate the economies

of the participating European countries and resulted in

an average growth of 41 percent in industrial production

and an average growth of 33.5 percent in per capita

gross national product during the four years of the program;

Whereas the spectacular economic revival of the countries of

Western Europe would not have been possible without the

creativity, technical skills, managerial competence, and

hard work of the European peoples; nevertheless, the
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Marshall Plan was a vital element in assisting the European peoples in the postwar economic recovery;

Whereas the multinational economic cooperation required and

encouraged by the Marshall Plan was a significant impetus in fostering transnational European economic cooperation and unity which ultimately helped to pave the

way for the North Atlantic Treaty, in developing the

multifaceted relationship between the United States and

the countries of Europe, and in contributing to the establishment of the European Union; and

Whereas 1997 marks the 50th anniversary of the original

speech by Secretary of State George C. Marshall calling

for the establishment of the Marshall Plan: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That the Congress—

3 (1) urges all Americans on the 50th anniversary

4 of the Marshall Plan to reflect upon the significance

5 of this program as a concrete embodiment of the

6 commitment of the United States to fostering peace7 ful relations with and the economic prosperity of the

8 countries of Europe;

9 (2) reaffirms the commitment that was ex10 pressed in the original Marshall Plan (‘‘Economic

11 Cooperation Act of 1948,’’ sec. 102, Public Law 80–

12 472) was enacted—namely, that ‘‘intimate economic

13 and other relationships exist between the United

14 States and the nations of Europe,’’ that extensive
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1 and friendly relations with the nations of Europe

2 and with the community of European nations is vital

3 to the promotion of ‘‘the general welfare and na4 tional interest of the United States’’ and that the

5 prosperity and security of Europe are essential to

6 ‘‘the establishment of a lasting peace’’; and

7 (3) acknowledges and commends the efforts of

8 those countries which originally participated in the

9 Marshall Plan to assist the countries of Central and

10 Eastern Europe and the newly independent republics

11 of the former Soviet Union in their efforts to develop

12 market economies and democratic political systems

13 as a reflection of the same generous spirit that moti14 vated the people of the United States to help these

15 Western European countries fifty years ago.

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