IV 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 831 
Calling on the United States Government to uphold the founding democratic 
principles of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and establish a 
Center for Democratic Resilience within the headquarters of the North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 2, 2021 
Mr. CONNOLLY (for himself and Mr. TURNER) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Calling on the United States Government to uphold the 
founding democratic principles of the North Atlantic 
Treaty Organization and establish a Center for Demo-
cratic Resilience within the headquarters of the North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization. 
Whereas the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is 
the world’s preeminent political and military alliance 
committed to democracy and the collective defense of its 
members; 
Whereas the preamble of NATO’s founding North Atlantic 
Treaty, signed in Washington, DC, on April 4, 1949, de-
clares the alliance is ‘‘founded on the principles of democ-
racy, individual liberty, and the rule of law’’; 
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•HRES 831 IH 
Whereas democracies across the alliance face external threats 
from authoritarian regimes such as Russia and China 
and internal threats from proponents of illiberalism; 
Whereas there is a broad agreement within the alliance of the 
need to strengthen the democracies of NATO members, 
partners, and aspirant countries; 
Whereas, in April 2020, NATO Secretary General Jens 
Stoltenberg appointed an independent Reflection Group 
tasked with supporting a forward-looking reflection proc-
ess meant to strengthen the political dimension of the al-
liance; 
Whereas the Reflection Group’s report, ‘‘NATO 2030: United 
for a New Era’’, included analyses and recommendations 
for the alliance to address ‘‘ ‘democratic recession,’ the 
global erosion of democratic norms, and the rise of 
authoritarianism’’, including— 
(1) ‘‘A shared democratic identity is what distin-
guishes the Alliance from the principal threats and chal-
lenges it faces.’’; 
(2) ‘‘NATO should reassert its core identity as an 
Alliance rooted in the principles of democracy.’’; 
(3) ‘‘Any commitment to strengthening NATO’s po-
litical cohesion therefore has to be orientated toward 
those shared values and ideals, grounded in democracy, 
rule of law and individual liberty.’’; and 
(4) recommending the establishment of a Center of 
Excellence for Democratic Resilience in order to strength-
en NATO democracies against external threats; 
Whereas the Brussels Summit Communique´ issued by the 
Heads of State and Government participating in the 
meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Brussels on 
June 14, 2021, stated— 
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•HRES 831 IH 
(1) ‘‘NATO is the strongest and most successful Al-
liance in history. It guarantees the security of our terri-
tory and our one billion citizens, our freedom, and the 
values we share, including individual liberty, human 
rights, democracy, and the rule of law.’’; 
(2) ‘‘State and non-state actors challenge the rules- 
based international order and seek to undermine democ-
racy across the globe.’’; and 
(3) ‘‘We reaffirm the Alliance’s shared democratic 
principles as well as our commitment to the spirit and 
the letter of the North Atlantic Treaty.’’; 
Whereas in Brussels the Allies also committed to updating 
NATO’s Strategic Concept; 
Whereas NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has reit-
erated that one of the primary purposes of updating the 
Strategic Concept must be a recommitment to the found-
ing values of the alliance; 
Whereas the NATO Parliamentary Assembly supports a new 
Strategic Concept that reaffirms that the support and 
strengthening of democratic institutions is foundational 
to the collective security of Allies; and 
Whereas the NATO Parliamentary Assembly has endorsed 
and advanced a proposal to establish a NATO Center for 
Democratic Resilience within NATO headquarters for the 
purposes of monitoring and identifying challenges to de-
mocracy, human rights, and the rule of law and facili-
tating democracy and governance assistance to member, 
partner, and aspirant states, when requested: Now, there-
fore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
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•HRES 831 IH 
(1) reaffirms its unequivocal support for the 
North Atlantic Treaty Organization as an alliance 
founded on democratic principles; 
(2) calls on the President to use the voice and 
vote of the United States to adopt a new Strategic 
Concept for NATO that is clear about its support 
for shared democratic values and committed to en-
hancing NATO’s capacity to strengthen democratic 
institutions within NATO member, partner, and as-
pirant countries; and 
(3) calls on the President to use the voice and 
vote of the United States to establish a Center for 
Democratic Resilience within NATO headquarters. 
Æ 
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