[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 154 (Friday, September 29, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1894-E1895]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RUSSIA AND NATO EXPANSION

                                 ______


                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 29, 1995

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, the ink had hardly dried on 
Russian President Boris Yeltsin's secret decrees authorizing military 
intervention in Chechnya last December when he arrived in Budapest for 
a summit meeting of the Conference, now Organization, on Security and 
Cooperation in Europe [OSCE]. Ironically, the summit agenda included 
adoption of a so-called Code of Conduct on Politico-Military Aspects of 
Security aimed at, among other things, promoting the peaceful 
settlement of disputes. The Code also reiterated the sovereign right of 
participating States to join alliances, a contentious point which has 
had a chilling effect on United States-Russian relations as a growing 
number of European states seek to join NATO. At a Budapest news 
conference, Yeltsin decried eastward expansion, warning of the growing 
prospects for what he termed a ``cold peace'' and cautioning against 
creation of new lines of demarcation in Europe which would ``sow the 
seeds of mistrust.''
  Mr. Speaker, Moscow's preoccupation with NATO expansion diverts 
attention away from the real threat to Russian security and stability--
the Kremlin's failure to resolve crises, such as the conflict in 
Chechnya, through peaceful means. President Yeltsin has, himself, sown 
the seeds of mistrust in the fertile killing fields of Chechnya. 
Veteran Russian human rights activist Sergei Kovalev, who appeared 
before the Helsinki Commission earlier this year, recently warned of an 
increasing militarization in Russia, resulting from the Chechen 
conflict, which could undermine moves toward democracy in his country. 
Last December, Yeltsin suggested it premature ``to bury democracy in 
Russia.'' Time will tell if Russian democracy can weather the turbulent 
storm brewing on the horizon as the country prepares for a new round of 
parliamentary elections later this year.
  ``If history teaches anything,'' President Reagan once observed, ``it 
teaches self-delusion in the face of unpleasant facts is folly.'' Mr. 
Speaker, it appears that, at long last, the Clinton administration may 
be beginning to come to terms with present realities in Russia. Deputy 
Secretary of State Strobe Talbott stated last week that ``there is 
great uncertainty about the future in the East * * * and we have to be 
prepared for the worst even as we do everything we can to bring about 
the best.'' An expanded NATO, Talbott acknowledged, could protect 
Europe from possible turmoil in Russia. His remarks came after an 
official visit to Moscow. Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense Perry, on a 
tour of capitals of several leading candidates for NATO membership, 
signaled a growing determination to proceed, albeit gradually, with 
NATO expansion.
  In a related development, NATO ambassadors in Brussels last week gave 
preliminary approval to criteria which could govern expansion of the 
Alliance beyond its current 16 members. To date, 25 countries, 
including Russia, have joined the Partnership For Peace Program. The 
expansion study, to be presented to interested countries on Thursday, 
will, I hope, provide much-needed impetus to 

[[Page E 1895]]
the process of enlarging NATO. A number of countries, including 
Romania, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine have already asked 
NATO to dispatch missions to their capitals in order to receive further 
details on the process.
  Russian reaction to these developments has been predictably sharp. 
Moscow's vocal opposition to NATO expansion could, ironically, further 
solidify support for membership in former Warsaw Pact countries and, 
perhaps, in some of the New Independent States.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the administration to resist firmly any attempt 
by Russia to veto NATO expansion, in general, or the admission of any 
state or states, in particular. President Clinton should clearly 
communicate this point to President Yeltsin when the two meet next 
month in New York. It is my view that every state should be given the 
same chance to pursue NATO membership, including the Baltic States and 
Ukraine.
  It is up to Russia to determine what, if any, relationship it is 
interested in pursuing with the Alliance. Mr. Speaker, the process of 
NATO expansion should not be further delayed as the Russians attempt to 
sort out their own affairs. Mr. Speaker, a democratic Russia has 
nothing to fear from the expansion of a voluntary defensive alliance 
founded upon democratic principles and norms of behavior. Russia has 
sown the seeds of mistrust through its brutal military campaign in 
Chechnya and it is up to the Russians to demonstrate that they can 
indeed be a reliable partner with the West.

                          ____________________