IV 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1439 
Recognizing Robert ‘‘Bob’’ A. Hand for 40 years of service to the Commission 
on Security and Cooperation in Europe. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 18, 2022 
Mr. COHEN (for himself, Mr. HUDSON, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. WILSON of 
South Carolina, Mr. ADERHOLT, Ms. MOORE
of Wisconsin, Mr. 
CLEAVER, and Mr. SMITH of New Jersey) submitted the following resolu-
tion; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Recognizing Robert ‘‘Bob’’ A. Hand for 40 years of service 
to the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. 
Whereas Robert (Bob) Hand has given 40 years of faithful 
service to the Commission on Security and Cooperation 
in Europe, making him the longest serving staff of the 
United States Helsinki Commission to date; 
Whereas he is a highly respected expert on the Western Bal-
kans with his work being invaluable during the wars in 
the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, he was focused on 
holding accountable those responsible for atrocities such 
as the Srebrenica genocide in 1995 and the murder of 
the Albanian-American Bytyqi brothers in Serbia in 
2001, and he kept Commissioners up to date on develop-
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•HRES 1439 IH 
ments in the region, including in Albania, where he is 
also known for his expert analysis; 
Whereas having served on numerous United States delega-
tions to Organization for Security and Cooperation in 
Europe (OSCE) meetings, observed dozens of elections, 
and served as a mission member on one of the OSCE’s 
first field missions, the OSCE Missions of Long Duration 
in Kosovo, Sandjak, and Vojvodina while stationed in 
Novi Pazar in 1993, Bob’s institutional expertise and 
memory on the OSCE has been vital to both the Helsinki 
Commission and the Department of State; 
Whereas in his role as the Secretary of the United States del-
egation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (PA), Bob 
deftly and tirelessly guaranteed that the delegation was 
always well-prepared to engage with our counterparts 
from other countries and that our proposals and resolu-
tions had the best possible chance for adoption; 
Whereas his deep expertise on procedural matters and elec-
tion monitoring, among other processes, made him an ex-
traordinarily effective advocate and negotiator for United 
States interests and for human rights and democracy 
throughout his time as Secretary of the United States 
delegation; 
Whereas no major meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly 
could be considered ‘‘typical’’, with an enormous variety 
of subjects discussed, new procedures created, and dif-
ferent Members of Congress participating on the United 
States delegation from meeting to meeting, Bob rose to 
a huge diversity of challenges as Secretary of the United 
States delegation, and he ensured that Members could 
meaningfully participate and contribute, and that the 
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United States presence was impactful in every meeting he 
coordinated; 
Whereas during annual sessions in particular, Bob’s calm de-
meanor and deep knowledge of OSCE Parliamentary As-
sembly processes helped all members of the delegation, 
whether Commissioners or not, whether it was their 1st 
or 15th time at an OSCE PA meeting, to know where 
they were supposed to be, when they were voting, what 
issues were at stake, and when they were scheduled to 
speak; 
Whereas ahead of OSCE’s yearly gatherings, Bob skillfully 
collected signatures from other delegations for United 
States initiatives in the Parliamentary Assembly as well 
as secured support from Members for important supple-
mentary items and amendments fielded by other delega-
tions; 
Whereas at the 2022 OSCE PA Annual Session in Bir-
mingham, Bob worked diligently with several other dele-
gations to ensure that a critical resolution condemning 
Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine was adopted 
with the strongest possible language; 
Whereas the United States delegation had a 100-percent suc-
cess rate at the 2022 OSCE PA Annual Session with the 
joint Ukraine resolution submitted by the United States, 
Ukrainian, and Lithuanian delegations, and all United 
States amendments to committee resolutions and supple-
mentary items adopted; 
Whereas over the years, Bob guided the United States dele-
gation through elections for OSCE PA leadership and 
helped secure positions for United States Members as 
OSCE PA President, Vice Presidents, and committee 
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Chairs to make up the OSCE PA Bureau as well as posi-
tions on ad hoc committees and appointments as Special 
Representatives on Anti-Semitism, Racism and Intoler-
ance, Human Trafficking Issues, and on Political Pris-
oners; 
Whereas Bob was instrumental in ensuring that the COVID 
pandemic in no way diminished the United States delega-
tion’s consistent and meaningful impact, and that United 
States objectives were advanced at each and every oppor-
tunity despite the unprecedented shift to online formats 
spanning multiple time zones; 
Whereas Bob was always guided by a clear sense that what 
the United States says matters in a body such as the 
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, he prioritized principles 
over dialogue for its own sake, and he served the Com-
mission’s mandate faithfully and tirelessly; and 
Whereas his longstanding relationships with the OSCE Par-
liamentary Assembly leadership, staff, and other parlia-
mentarians mean his departure will be felt not only by 
the Commission but by many of our friends in the OSCE 
region who have worked with him over the years: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) recognizes Robert A. Hand’s 40 years of 
dedicated service to the Commission on Security and 
Cooperation in Europe (United States Helsinki 
Commission); 
(2) appreciates his sound policy guidance on the 
Balkans and other regions throughout his time with 
the Commission; 
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(3) congratulates him on his successes as Sec-
retary of the United States delegation to the Organi-
zation for Security and Cooperation in Europe Par-
liamentary Assembly; and 
(4) wishes him all the best in the next chapters 
of his personal and professional endeavors. 
Æ 
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