III 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 646 

Expressing the Senate’s support for Finland and Sweden’s accession into 

the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the expedited ratification of accession protocols. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 19, 2022 

Mr. RISCH (for himself, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. MCCONNELL, 

Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. CARDIN, and Mr. COONS) submitted 

the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 

Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the Senate’s support for Finland and Sweden’s 

accession into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization 

(NATO) and the expedited ratification of accession protocols. 

Whereas Sweden and Finland are substantial contributors to 

the international community and play important roles in 

the United Nations, the European Union, the Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe, and other international organizations; 

Whereas, during the Cold War and since its end, Sweden and 

Finland sought to maintain peace in their region through 

policies of military non-alignment and neutral relations 

between Russia and the West, while nonetheless remainVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:40 May 20, 2022 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR646.IS SR646

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•SRES 646 IS 

ing true to their values and condemning the Russian government’s authoritarian acts; 

Whereas the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation 

on February 24, 2022, forced the transatlantic community to reconsider the geopolitical stability of their region; 

Whereas NATO is the most successful political-military alliance in history and, guided by a set of common values, 

provides collective defense to nearly 1,000,000,000 people 

living in its member nations; 

Whereas the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine marks 

the largest military conflict in Europe since World War 

II, representing a dramatic shift for European security 

and requiring NATO to change its policies to increase, 

modernize, and enhance its force posture and to create 

more strategic depth to adequately confront the new challenges, specifically those posed by Russia and China; 

Whereas Sweden and Finland have provided incredible support to NATO-led operations, such as the International 

Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, KFOR in 

Kosovo, and peacekeeping operations in Bosnia and 

Herzegovina; 

Whereas both Finland and Sweden have been model members 

of NATO’s Partnership Interoperability Initiative since 

its founding in 2014, and of NATO’s Partnership for 

Peace since its founding in 1994; 

Whereas NATO has a range of capabilities that can enhance 

the ability of Sweden and Finland to defend and deter 

conflict in their region; 

Whereas Sweden and Finland have well-developed professional militaries and sophisticated defense industries that 


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•SRES 646 IS 

can provide NATO with new capabilities to bolster collective defense; 

Whereas Sweden and Finland have proven their willingness 

and capability to contribute to cooperative international 

security efforts by donating military and humanitarian 

assistance to Ukraine and imposing coordinated sanctions 

on Russia; 

Whereas each prospective NATO member is expected to have 

a functioning democratic political system based on a market economy, fair treatment of minority populations, a 

commitment to resolve conflicts peacefully, an ability and 

willingness to make contribution to NATO operations, 

and a commitment to democratic civil-military relations 

and institutions; 

Whereas, alongside a number of our European allies, Finland 

and Sweden have recently announced the expansion and 

reform of their militaries, efforts that can be maximized 

if channeled toward collective security through the NATO 

framework; 

Whereas the Arctic region, which holds increasing importance 

for United States and European security, has already 

seen encroachments from Russia and China, and Sweden 

and Finland are uniquely poised to address these regional 

challenges and help NATO confront them; and 

Whereas Russia has threatened Sweden and Finland with 

‘‘serious military and political consequences should it 

choose to join NATO’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) welcomes Finland and Sweden’s decision to 

3 join NATO; 


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•SRES 646 IS 

1 (2) acknowledges that Russia’s invasion of 

2 Ukraine has dramatically changed the security situa3 tion in Europe, and that the reform and expansion 

4 of NATO is key to ensuring a safe and prosperous 

5 future for the United States and critical allies and 

6 partners; 

7 (3) recognizes that Sweden and Finland have 

8 surpassed the qualifications expected of prospective 

9 members and that both countries have much to con10 tribute and gain from membership in the NATO alli11 ance; 

12 (4) reaffirms its support for NATO’s collective 

13 security commitment and for maximizing our allies’ 

14 combined defense capabilities through NATO coordi15 nation and cooperation; 

16 (5) calls on the President to move expeditiously 

17 to complete all documents and reports needed to 

18 support the Senate’s approval of the accession proto19 cols; and 

20 (6) calls on all NATO members to move rapidly 

21 to complete their ratification processes. 

Æ 


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