II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3950 

To establish the Baltic Security and Economic Enhancement Initiative for 

the purpose of increasing security and economic ties with the Baltic 

countries and to establish the Baltic Security Initiative for the purpose 

of deepening security cooperation with the Baltic countries, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 29, 2022 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. GRASSLEY, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. SCOTT of Florida, Mr. KING, Mr. BLUNT, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. CASSIDY, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Ms. HASSAN, 

Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. COONS) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To establish the Baltic Security and Economic Enhancement 

Initiative for the purpose of increasing security and economic ties with the Baltic countries and to establish 

the Baltic Security Initiative for the purpose of deepening security cooperation with the Baltic countries, and 

for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Baltic Defense and 

3 Deterrence Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

5 It is the sense of Congress that— 

6 (1) supporting and strengthening the security 

7 of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (referred to in 

8 this Act as the ‘‘Baltic countries’’) is in the national 

9 security interests of the United States; 

10 (2) continuing to strengthen and update the 

11 United States-Baltics security cooperation roadmap 

12 is critical to achieving strategic security priorities as 

13 the Baltic countries face ongoing belligerence and 

14 threats from the Russian Federation, including amid 

15 the Russian Federation’s illegal and unprovoked war 

16 in Ukraine that began on February 24, 2022; 

17 (3) the United States should encourage ad18 vancement of the Three Seas Initiative to strengthen 

19 transport, energy, and digital infrastructures among 

20 Eastern European countries, including the Baltic 

21 countries; and 

22 (4) improved economic ties between the United 

23 States and the Baltic countries, including to counter 

24 economic pressure by the People’s Republic of 

25 China, offer an opportunity to strengthen the United 

26 States-Baltic strategic partnership. 


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1 SEC. 3. BALTIC SECURITY AND ECONOMIC ENHANCEMENT 

2 INITIATIVE. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of State shall 

4 establish and implement an initiative, to be known as the 

5 ‘‘Baltic Security and Economic Enhancement Initiative’’, 

6 for the purpose of increasing security and economic ties 

7 with the Baltic countries. 

8 (b) OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the Baltic Secu9 rity and Economic Enhancement Initiative shall be— 

10 (1) to ensure timely delivery of security assist11 ance to the Baltic countries, prioritizing assistance 

12 to bolster defenses against hybrid warfare and im13 prove interoperability with the military forces of the 

14 North Atlantic Treaty Organization; 

15 (2) to mitigate the impact on the Baltic coun16 tries of economic coercion by the Russian Federation 

17 and the People’s Republic of China; 

18 (3) to identify new opportunities for foreign di19 rect investment and United States business ties; and 

20 (4) to bolster United States support for the eco21 nomic and energy security needs of the Baltic coun22 tries, including by convening an annual trade forum 

23 with the Baltic countries and the United States 

24 International Development Finance Corporation. 

25 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

26 authorized to be appropriated for the Department of 


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1 State, $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 

2 2027 to carry out the initiative authorized under sub3 section (a). 

4 SEC. 4. BALTIC SECURITY INITIATIVE. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Defense 

6 shall establish and implement an initiative, to be known 

7 as the ‘‘Baltic Security Initiative’’, for the purpose of 

8 deepening security cooperation with the Baltic countries. 

9 (b) OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the Baltic Secu10 rity Initiative shall be— 

11 (1) to achieve United States national security 

12 objectives, including deterring aggression by the 

13 Russian Federation and bolstering the long-term se14 curity of North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies; 

15 (2) to enhance regional planning and coopera16 tion among the Baltic countries, particularly with re17 spect to long-term regional capability projects, in18 cluding— 

19 (A) long-range precision fire systems and 

20 capabilities; 

21 (B) integrated air and missile defense; 

22 (C) maritime domain awareness; 

23 (D) land forces development, including 

24 stockpiling large caliber ammunition; 


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1 (E) command, control, communications, 

2 computers, intelligence, surveillance, and recon3 naissance; 

4 (F) special operations forces development; 

5 and 

6 (G) coordination with and security en7 hancements for Poland, which is a neighboring 

8 North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally; and 

9 (3) to improve the Baltic countries’ cyber de10 fenses and resilience to hybrid threats. 

11 (c) STRATEGY.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

13 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec14 retary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report 

15 setting forth the strategy of the Department of De16 fense to achieve the objectives described in sub17 section (b). 

18 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—The strategy required 

19 by paragraph (1) shall include a consideration of— 

20 (A) security assistance programs for the 

21 Baltic countries managed by the Department of 

22 State; 

23 (B) the ongoing security threats to the 

24 North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s eastern 

25 flank posed by Russian aggression, including as 


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1 a result of the Russian Federation’s 2022 inva2 sion of Ukraine with support from Belarus; and 

3 (C) rising tensions with, and presence in 

4 the Baltic countries of, the People’s Republic of 

5 China, including economic bullying of the Baltic 

6 countries by the People’s Republic of China. 

7 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

8 authorized to be appropriated for the Department of De9 fense, $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 

10 2027 to carry out the initiative authorized under sub11 section (a). 

Æ 


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