A resolution commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine.

Bill: 118-sres-434
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID]
Introduced: 2023-10-26
Policy area: International Affairs
Latest action: action_date: 2023-10-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text: CR S5217)

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-10-26
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This resolution commemorates the 200th anniversary of the promulgation of the Monroe Doctrine. Specifically, it reasserts the rights and interests of the United States, in accordance with the Monroe Doctrine, to oppose foreign powers extending malign influence in the Western Hemisphere. The resolution also recognizes the principles of freedom and independence in the Western Hemisphere enshrined in the Monroe Doctrine.</p> <p></p>

tv_txt: III 118th CONGRESS 1st Session S. RES. 434 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES October 26, 2023 Mr. Risch (for himself, Mr. Ricketts , Mr. Cornyn , Mr. Scott of Florida , Mr. Grassley , Mr. Crapo , Mrs. Blackburn , Mr. Vance , Mr. Rubio , and Mr. Scott of South Carolina ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine.

Whereas, on December 2, 1823, President James Monroe articulated what became to be known as the Monroe Doctrine in his seventh annual message to Congress; Whereas in the Monroe Doctrine, President Monroe asserted a principle in which the rights and interests of the United States are involved, that the American continents, by the free and independent condition which they have assumed and maintain, are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by foreign powers; Whereas the Monroe Doctrine asserted a spirit of solidarity with the newly independent republics of Latin America and established the principle that autocratic influences and depredations by powers outside the region present dangers to the peace, safety, and independence of the free nations of the Western Hemisphere; Whereas President Monroe established the defensive character of the Monroe Doctrine by asserting that, It is only when our rights are invaded or seriously menaced that we resent injuries or make preparation for our defense. ; Whereas President Monroe proclaimed the doctrine after the Russian Empire attempted to claim and colonize territories in present-day Alaska and the Pacific Northwest in 1821, and the seizure of the USS Pearl by the Russian sloop Apollon in 1822; Whereas, according to the National Archives, the United States Government invoked the Monroe Doctrine in 1865 to exert diplomatic and military pressure in support of the Mexican President Benito Juárez, which enabled Juárez to lead a successful revolt against the Emperor Maximilian, who had been placed on the throne by the French Empire; Whereas, according to the National Archives, President John F. Kennedy invoked the Monroe Doctrine when the Soviet Union built missile launch sites in Cuba in 1962, and as part of the successful actions of his administration to see the Soviet missiles withdrawn from the dismantled missile launch sites in Cuba; Whereas, on September 17, 1987, the Senate adopted an amendment, by a bipartisan vote of 90 to 2, to S. 1174 (100th Congress), known as the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 , affirming the sense of the Senate that the policy of the United States toward Central America should be based on the principles of the Monroe Doctrine ; Whereas the National Security Strategy dated October 2022 states that no region impacts the United States more directly than the Western Hemisphere, and acknowledges the threat of external interference or coercion in the Western Hemisphere from the People’s Republic of China, the Russian Federation, and the Islamic Republic of Iran; Whereas the 2023 Posture Statement of the United States Southern Command acknowledges that external malign actors like the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation are aggressively exerting influence over neighboring countries in Latin America and the Caribbean and raises concerns about Iranian intelligence and security activities; Whereas the 2023 Posture Statement of the United States Southern Command notes that the People’s Republic of China is encroaching upon sensitive critical infrastructure in the Western Hemisphere through investments, including in deep-water ports, cyber facilities, and space facilities which can have a potential dual use for malign commercial and military activities; Whereas the 2023 Posture Statement of the United States Southern Command notes that the Russian Federation undertakes extensive disinformation campaigns in Latin America, bolsters authoritarian regimes like the Republic of Cuba, the Republic of Nicaragua, and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and pursues military engagement and gray zone operations in this region; Whereas the posture statement for 2023 of the United States Northern Command asserts Our competitors and potential adversaries, particularly the People’s Republic of China and Russia, continue to challenge the rules-based international order and seek to advance their interests and gain global advantages through political intimidation, economic coercion, cyber and information operations, asymmetric attacks on infrastructure, and the direct threat or actual employment of military force ; and Whereas the letter and spirit of the Monroe Doctrine continue to inspire the efforts of the people of the United States to— (1) maintain robust domestic, economic, and defense capabilities; and (2) partner with democratic nations of the Western Hemisphere on a basis of mutual respect and support for shared beneficial diplomatic, commercial, and security endeavors: Now, therefore, be it

That the Senate— (1) commemorates the 200th anniversary of the promulgation of the Monroe Doctrine; (2) reasserts the rights and interests of the United States, in accordance with the Monroe Doctrine, to oppose a foreign power extending malign influence that could endanger or undermine the democracies of the Western Hemisphere; and (3) recognizes the principles of hemisphere freedom and independence, as enshrined in the Monroe Doctrine, as an enduring foundational cornerstone of the foreign policy of the United States.