[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 286 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 286

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United 
  States remains committed to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 3, 2019

   Mr. Connolly (for himself and Mr. Turner) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

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                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United 
  States remains committed to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Whereas, for 70 years, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has served 
        as the world's preeminent political and military alliance committed to 
        the collective defense of its members and dedicated to ensuring the 
        peace, security, and stability of the Euro-Atlantic area;
Whereas NATO was founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty, and 
        the rule of law;
Whereas the security of the United States is inseparable from the participation 
        and leadership of the United States in NATO;
Whereas NATO continues to promote a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace;
Whereas, since the end of the cold war, NATO has continued to redefine and 
        transform itself and take on new missions and confront emerging threats 
        such as terrorism, hybrid warfare, instability caused by failed states, 
        cyber attacks, piracy, and threats to global energy security;
Whereas after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, article 5 of the 
        North Atlantic Treaty, signed in Washington on April 4, 1949, was 
        invoked for the first time in the history of the organization;
Whereas NATO members subsequently deployed tens of thousands of troops to 
        Afghanistan to respond to a dangerous terrorist threat;
Whereas European allies and Canada suffered approximately one-third of all 
        fatalities suffered by NATO forces in Afghanistan;
Whereas NATO has worked to deter Russian aggression, including responding to the 
        illegal invasions and occupations of Georgia and Ukraine by the Russian 
        Federation;
Whereas the United States recognizes the significant increases in allied 
        national defense budgets following the Wales Summit in 2014 and 
        continues to recognize allied burden-sharing as a critical component of 
        collective defense;
Whereas NATO continues to support an open-door membership policy of admitting 
        any European country that can contribute to the promotion and protection 
        of freedom, democracy, stability, and peace throughout Europe;
Whereas NATO continues to enhance the security of Europe and the world by 
        strengthening partnerships with countries around the world; and
Whereas Congress recognizes its commitment to the alliance by actively 
        participating in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and fulfilling its 
        statutory commitment to the assembly in order to facilitate legislative 
        awareness and understanding of critical security issues affecting the 
        alliance: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) reaffirms its unequivocal support for the North 
        Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its cornerstone article 
        5 collective defense commitment;
            (2) calls on allies to uphold the founding principles of 
        the alliance by strengthening democratic institutions, 
        respecting individual liberty, and reinforcing the rule of law;
            (3) supports continued progress by all allies towards the 
        fair burden-sharing commitments made at the Wales Summit;
            (4) supports the statutory mandates regarding United States 
        participation in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly; and
            (5) recognizes the success of NATO as a triumph for liberal 
        democracy and a rules-based international order.
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