Title: A resolution supporting the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and recognizing its 70 years of accomplishments.
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
This resolution lauds the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for its contributions to the safety, security, and democratic systems of its member states, and reaffirms U.S. commitment to NATO's mission. It also calls on NATO members to fulfill their pledges to fully share the security burden by increasing their defense spending, and expresses the Senate's readiness to consider North Macedonia's application to join NATO.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 123 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 123

 Supporting the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and recognizing its 
                      70 years of accomplishments.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 27, 2019

  Mr. Risch (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Tillis, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. 
Johnson, and Mr. Murphy) submitted the following resolution; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Supporting the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and recognizing its 
                      70 years of accomplishments.

    Resolved,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    The Senate makes the following findings:
            (1) The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was 
        founded on April 4, 1949, to ``safeguard the freedom, common 
        heritage and civilisation of [its] peoples, founded on the 
        principles of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of 
        law''.
            (2) The United States Senate approved the North Atlantic 
        Treaty of 1949 on July 21, 1949, and the United States 
        Government acceded to membership in NATO on August 24, 1949.
            (3) NATO is a community of democracies that acts 
        collectively to promote freedom, stability, and peace around 
        the globe.
            (4) NATO has continued to welcome into its membership those 
        nations that have evinced a desire to partake in the alliance's 
        commitment to settle international disputes peaceably, 
        strengthen their free institutions, promote conditions of 
        stability and well-being, and seek to eliminate conflict in 
        their international economic policies, and which are dedicated 
        to maintaining and developing their capacity to resist armed 
        attack.
            (5) The sustained commitment of NATO to mutual defense has 
        made possible the democratic and economic transformation of 
        Central and Eastern Europe.
            (6) Lasting stability and security in Europe requires the 
        further military, economic, and political integration of 
        emerging democracies into existing European and transatlantic 
        structures.
            (7) NATO serves as a force multiplier, whose command 
        structures, training institutions, and multilateral exercises 
        have generated unprecedented multinational contributions to 
        United States national security priorities and enabled European 
        and Canadian soldiers to fight side-by-side with members of the 
        United States Armed Forces.
            (8) The allies invoked NATO's Article 5 collective defense 
        clause and offered military assistance to the United States in 
        responding to the attacks of September 11, 2001.
            (9) NATO member nations stood in support of the United 
        States after it was attacked on September 11, 2001, sending 
        tens of thousands troops to fight alongside American soldiers 
        in Afghanistan.
            (10) NATO is currently involved in several operations 
        benefiting United States national security, including Operation 
        Resolute Support in Afghanistan, NATO's Kosovo Force (KFOR), 
        Operation Sea Guardian in the Mediterranean Sea (maritime 
        situational awareness, counter-terrorism at sea, and support to 
        capacity-building), the capacity-building NATO Mission Iraq, 
        support for African Union missions, and air policing missions 
        in the member and nonmember nations of Eastern Europe.
            (11) NATO members have stood against Russian aggression in 
        Eastern Europe, have supported United States sanctions on that 
        country and imposed their own, have responded, as noted in the 
        NATO Brussels Summit Declaration of 2018, ``to the deteriorated 
        security environment by enhancing our deterrence and defence 
        posture, including by a forward presence in the eastern part of 
        the Alliance,'' and have asserted that ``there can be no return 
        to `business as usual' until there is a clear, constructive 
        change in Russia's actions that demonstrates compliance with 
        international law and its international obligations and 
        responsibilities''.
            (12) The NATO Wales Summit Declaration of 2014 pledged, 
        ``Allies currently meeting the NATO guideline to spend a 
        minimum of 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence 
        will aim to continue to do so . . . Allies whose current 
        proportion of GDP spent on defence is below this level will: 
        halt any decline in defence expenditure; aim to increase 
        defence expenditure in real terms as GDP grows; aim to move 
        towards the 2% guideline within a decade with a view to meeting 
        their NATO Capability Targets and filling NATO's capability 
        shortfalls.''.
            (13) Twenty-two NATO nations have increased their military 
        spending since the Wales Declaration of 2014.
            (14) The NATO Brussels Summit Declaration of 2018 stated, 
        ``We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to all aspects of the 
        Defence Investment Pledge agreed at the 2014 Wales Summit, and 
        to submit credible national plans on its implementation, 
        including the spending guidelines for 2024, planned 
        capabilities, and contributions. Fair burden sharing underpins 
        the Alliance's cohesion, solidarity, credibility, and ability 
        to fulfil our Article 3 and Article 5 commitments. We welcome 
        the considerable progress made since the Wales Summit with four 
        consecutive years of real growth in non-US defence expenditure. 
        All Allies have started to increase the amount they spend on 
        defence in real terms and some two-thirds of Allies have 
        national plans in place to spend 2% of their Gross Domestic 
        Product on defence by 2024. More than half of Allies are 
        spending more than 20% of their defence expenditures on major 
        equipment, including related research and development, and, 
        according to their national plans, 24 Allies will meet the 20% 
        guideline by 2024. Allies are delivering more of the heavier, 
        high-end capabilities we require and are improving the 
        readiness, deployability, sustainability, and interoperability 
        of their forces.''.
            (15) NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has stated, 
        ``By the end of next year, NATO allies will add . . . 100 
        billion extra U.S. dollars toward defense.''.
            (16) Allies who have recently acceded to NATO are amongst 
        the highest per capita contributors to NATO missions.
            (17) At the Bucharest Summit of the North Atlantic Treaty 
        Organization in April 2008, the Heads of State and Government 
        of the member countries of NATO declared, ``NATO's ongoing 
        enlargement process has been an historic success in advancing 
        stability and cooperation and bringing us closer to our common 
        goal of a Europe whole and free, united in peace, democracy and 
        common values. NATO's door will remain open to European 
        democracies willing and able to assume the responsibilities and 
        obligations of membership, in accordance with Article 10 of the 
        Washington Treaty. We reiterate that decisions on enlargement 
        are for NATO itself to make.''.
            (18) Vice President Mike Pence in June 2017 reiterated that 
        the United States ``commitment [to NATO] is unwavering'' and 
        that ``NATO's open door must always remain so''.
            (19) The governments, leaders, and parliaments of Greece 
        and the Republic of North Macedonia have ended their dispute 
        and ratified the Prespa Agreement, resolving a long-standing 
        bilateral dispute and establishing a strategic partnership 
        between the two countries and clearing the way for North 
        Macedonia's accession to NATO.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

    The Senate--
            (1) lauds NATO for its 70-year maintenance of the alliance 
        and recognizes its singular contributions to maintaining the 
        safety, security, and democratic systems of its members;
            (2) calls on NATO member states to continue to fully meet 
        their Wales pledges, more fully share the security burden by 
        increasing their defense spending with a focus on meeting 
        capabilities targets, enhancing interoperability, improving 
        readiness, and modernization to respond to the threats that 
        face the alliance on each of its flanks;
            (3) stands in robust support of those NATO members who 
        spend two percent or more of their GDPs on defense, 
        acknowledges the four countries that have met that goal since 
        2014, and strongly encourages the remainder to strive to 
        quickly reach that goal;
            (4) affirms that the Senate stands ready to consider, if 
        all applicable criteria are satisfied, the Republic of North 
        Macedonia's application to join NATO;
            (5) backs the White House's 2017 affirmation that the 
        United States ``stand[s] firmly behind Article 5'' of the NATO 
        Treaty;
            (6) welcomes former Secretary of Defense James Mattis' 
        efforts to encourage significant NATO reforms, especially 
        regarding modernization, readiness, command structure 
        adaptation, military mobility, and improving NATO's speed of 
        decisionmaking to ensure the alliance remains fit for purpose; 
        and
            (7) reaffirms the commitment of the United States to NATO's 
        mission, and its belief that NATO is the most successful 
        security alliance in our Nation's history and one that will 
        continue to be a cornerstone of United States security.
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