Supporting 30 years of diplomatic relations between the United States and the independent Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, highlighting their assistance to Ukraine, and supporting continued democratic resiliency.

Bill: 118-hres-749
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Keating, William R. [D-MA-9]
Introduced: 2023-09-29
Policy area: International Affairs
Latest action: action_date: 2023-09-29
text: Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Summaries:
action_date: 2023-09-29
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>This resolution recognizes the people of Czechia and Slovakia for overthrowing communist rule in 1989 and for 30 years of independence. Specifically, it celebrates the cultural achievements of Czechia and Slovakia, supports the two countries' commitment to NATO and the European Union, recognizes their support for the people of Ukraine.</p>

tv_txt: IV 118th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 749 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 29, 2023 Mr. Keating (for himself and Mr. Wilson of South Carolina ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs RESOLUTION Supporting 30 years of diplomatic relations between the United States and the independent Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, highlighting their assistance to Ukraine, and supporting continued democratic resiliency.

Whereas the United States has been enriched by the Czechs, Slovaks, and others who emigrated to the United States from the territories of what are today the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, and continues to benefit from the strong ties between and among the citizens of our countries; Whereas Slovaks and Czechs in the United States called for a Czechoslovak state to be established in the 1915 Cleveland Agreement and the 1918 Pittsburgh Agreement; Whereas the United States profoundly contributed to the founding of an independent Czech-Slovak state when, on January 8, 1918, President Woodrow Wilson called for the free autonomous development of the peoples of Austria-Hungary in the Fourteen Points address to a joint session of Congress; Whereas the people of the present-day Czech Republic and the people of the present-day Slovak Republic proclaimed independence on October 28, 1918, and October 30, 1918, respectively, forming the common state of the Republic of Czechoslovakia; Whereas, on November 12, 1918, the United States and an independent Czechoslovakia established formal diplomatic relations; Whereas Czechoslovakia maintained its democracy throughout the interwar period until the Nazi invasion in 1938; Whereas, in February 1948, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia seized power from the postwar democratically elected Government of Czechoslovakia; Whereas, on August 20, 1968, 20 Soviet-led Warsaw Pact military divisions invaded Czechoslovakia to crush the Prague Spring , a period of greater political and economic liberty that followed the appointment of Alexander Dubček as First Secretary of the Czechoslovakian Communist Party; Whereas the independent civic initiative Charter 77 was established in 1977 and called on the Czechoslovak Government to fulfill its human rights commitments under the Helsinki Final Act, and many of its members played decisive roles in the Velvet Revolution; Whereas, in the nonviolent Velvet Revolution of November 1989, the peoples of both nations overthrew 40 years of authoritarian communist rule and ended two decades of Soviet occupation; Whereas, on February 21, 1990, Czechoslovak President Václav Havel delivered his historic address before a joint session of Congress saying, in part, that Czechoslovakia is a country that has set out on the road to democracy, a country where there is complete freedom of speech, which is getting ready for free elections and which wants to create a prosperous market economy and its own foreign policy ; Whereas, on January 1, 1993, the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic were formally created as independent states after a peaceful dissolution of Czechoslovakia; Whereas the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic, with the robust support of the United States, joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on March 12, 1999, and March 29, 2004, respectively, and have made significant contributions to collective defense and the operations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as well as international coalitions led by the United States around the world; Whereas the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic continue to demonstrate their strong commitment to advancing democratic values, peace, and security through their membership in the European Union, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and other international organizations; Whereas the peoples of the United States, the Czech Republic, and the Slovak Republic have forged a special relationship based on their shared historic ties, mutual respect, close cooperation, and the shared values of democracy, the rule of law, economic liberty, and individual rights and responsibility; Whereas vibrant Czech and Slovak diasporas have positively contributed to society in the United States; Whereas the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic celebrate the 30th anniversary of the National Guard State Partnership Program with the Texas, Nebraska, and Indiana National Guards, respectively, which has contributed to military readiness and interoperability between the United States and both the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic; Whereas the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic have completed significant democratic reforms enabling political systems and societies which respect the rule of law, freedom of speech and assembly, free and fair elections, and other democratic values; and Whereas the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic have shown unity in their support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s unjust and illegal war of aggression, and both countries have contributed significant military, humanitarian, and economic assistance to Ukraine in support of a free and democratic Ukraine: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1) supports a democratic and independent Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, both of whom, 30 years ago, emerged from decades of communist rule through the peaceful, nonviolent Velvet Revolution to affirm their human rights and democratic aspirations; (2) recognizes actions of the people of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic for overthrowing totalitarian communist rule in 1989 by waging a peaceful, nonviolent Velvet Revolution to affirm human rights and democratic aspirations; (3) celebrates the lasting contributions of the peoples of Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic to science, the arts, culture, music, literature, politics, trade, and international affairs; (4) applauds the achievements of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic in building free, open, democratic, and prosperous societies over the past 30 years; (5) expresses strong support of the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic’s role in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance and calls on both countries to continue their efforts to meet their 2 percent defense commitment and recognizes the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic as strong North Atlantic Treaty Organization partners on the alliance’s eastern flank; (6) recognizes the efforts of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic to stand with the people of Ukraine in their fight for freedom against illegal Russian aggression and provide significant military, humanitarian, and economic support to Ukraine; (7) recognizes the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic for their constitutions within the European Union; (8) reaffirms United States support for the freedom, human rights, democracy, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and prosperity of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic; (9) supports municipal-level cooperation including through organizations like the Pact of Free Cities, which highlights the importance of cities in protecting and promoting democratic values, sharing best practices, and finding practical solutions to best serve citizens; (10) supports increased cooperation through the United States-Czech Strategic Dialogue and the United States-Slovak Strategic Dialogue to address common threats and challenges including in the defense and energy sectors, climate change, regional security, cyber security, and resilience to disinformation; (11) supports modernization of the Czech and Slovak Armed Forces in light of Russia’s illegal aggression in Ukraine and increased emerging threats in the region; (12) commends the Czech Republic’s and Slovak Republic’s strong support of democratic partners in the face of attempted Chinese malign influence in Europe and ongoing hostile behavior by the People’s Republic of China; and (13) reaffirms the United States commitment to strengthening and supporting freedom of the press, civil society, and rule of law in Central Europe.