[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 35 (Tuesday, March 18, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H1108-H1109]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 BRINGING RUSSIA INTO THE WESTERN WORLD

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Taylor of North Carolina). Under the 
Speaker's announced policy of January 7, 1997, the gentleman from 
California [Mr. Horn] is recognized until midnight.
  Mr. HORN. Mr. Speaker, the United States must work to help align 
Russia with the democratic nations of the West. If we isolate Russia, 
we will miss a historic opportunity to bring Russia into the western 
world. If we do not, the result will be instability and unneeded 
conflict in the future.
  One of the interesting questions of history has been whether or not 
Russia is western or an eastern power, whether it is a European or an 
Asian nation. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO as it is 
known, faces the task of deciding where the frontiers of Europe lie.

                              {time}  2315

  Over three centuries ago, in 1703, Czar Peter the Great founded St. 
Petersburg as his capital. He sought to give Russia a more western-
oriented outlook. In the early 19th century, Napoleon of France invaded 
Russia. In the early 1940's Hitler invaded Russia, and Russia has cause 
to be wary of some of the Western Powers. During the Russian Civil War, 
after the communists had seized power and the Czar was removed and 
there had been a short bleep of democracy in Russian history; the West, 
including the United States of America, intervened on the side of the 
democratic Duma, a noble cause, the legislature, the only one of its 
day in 300 years of Russian history, and it provided that brief blip of 
democracy I mentioned, and it was a hopeful institution for a brief 
time. And yet the autocratic Czars and the totalitarian Soviets ruled 
Russia until very recent years.
  Despite its suspicion of the West and our suspicion of Soviet Russia, 
as allies from 1941 to 1945 we were still able to cooperate to stop and 
defeat the vicious murderous Nazi Germany.
  Western Europe and the United States now have a historic opportunity 
to promote reconciliation and cooperation with Russia. We have fought 
one Cold War with the Soviet Russia, which is no more. If we are to 
avoid a nationalistic, autocratic Russia arising from the chance that 
we will have democracy, we need to take diplomatic risks now.
  Let us recall that the enemies of the Second World War are now 
democracies. Germany, for example, and Germany's involvement with the 
European Community and NATO helped bind it further to the West. 
Germany, guided by progressive leadership since the end of the Second 
World War in the elimination of Hitler, overcame the deep and historic 
divisions which existed between France and Germany, two countries who 
had been at war with each other three times in 65 years. And then, of 
course, the great crimes of the Nazi period.
  Japan. Japan was as far different culturally from the United States 
and Europe as one could imagine in 1945. In the decade which spanned 
the period 1935 to 1945, Japan waged an aggressive war against its 
neighbors in Asia as well as the United States of America. Yet under 
the leadership of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, we imposed democracy on 
Japanese institutions which were militaristic and feudal in nature, and 
our military occupation helped the Japanese rebuild their country which 
had been shattered and overcome those militaristic forces that had led 
their country into aggressive wars in that decade of 1935 to 1945. And 
the result now is that we have stability and peace in East Asia.
  One obvious reason for the successful American alliance and the 
relationship we have with Germany and Japan is that we stationed our 
troops in both of those nations, and we had a major role in influencing 
the formation of new institutions in those countries. A second reason 
for the successful alliance was the common goal of halting the spread 
of communism as practiced by a number of Soviet dictators, the worst of 
which of course was Stalin. We must remember that we fought the Cold 
War against these dictators and zealots who ruled Russia through 
Communist ideology, fear, and militarism. For 75 years the Soviet Union 
was the leader of all of the Communist world except China. The Soviet 
Union, however, is no more. It collapsed in the face of its own 
weaknesses and because of the resolve of the western nations. We must 
show the same resolve to ensure that peace and stability represent the 
future of Europe.
  For this to happen, Russia must not be isolated but must become a 
partner of the West in the economic submits, in the European Community, 
and in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO operates by 
consensus. No nation can veto NATO decisions. Giving Russia a seat at 
the table in NATO does not mean it will be able to veto any application 
of any other nations. Whether as a formal member of NATO or as an 
advisory nature, it is important that Russia do receive that seat, and 
this will not result in its ability to block decisions of a military 
nature. Its fundamental mission that NATO now has is to keep Europe at 
peace.
  In brief, NATO is not the United Nations, whereas we know in the 
United Nations one of the five permanent members of the Security 
Council, including the United States of America, can exercise a veto 
over the actions of not only its colleagues on the Security Council, 
but the actions of the General Assembly which represents all nations in 
the United Nations.
  Mr. Speaker, it is the right of every sovereign nation to choose who 
its friends are. Russia cannot decide for the nations of central and 
eastern Europe on the question of NATO membership. It would also be 
foolish for NATO to automatically rule out Russia or any other Nation 
from NATO based on some of the current economic or social conditions 
that exist within those countries. It makes sense to consult with 
Russia on the future of NATO and the future of Europe. Russia's 
military power has been substantially weakened, but it still remains 
the greatest nuclear power in Europe. Isolating Russia will only help 
the domestic political goals of the Communists, the Fascists, and the 
nationalists who wish to undermine the progressive reforms which have 
occurred in Russia under the leadership of President Boris Yeltsin.
  We are at a point in history that will decide the future of our 
country for generations. Will the United States work to promote peace 
and cooperation in Europe? Or will we foolishly seek to gloat over our 
victory in the cold war by marginalizing Russia and thus helping the 
very elements of Russian society that we deplore, namely the 
Communists, the Fascists, and the nationalists who once in a while 
raise their head in this or that election.
  Have we reached a peace with Russia that is only a pause in the 
conflict, or will we work to create a peace that brings stability and 
prosperity? The choice is ours. Russia has vast natural resources and 
an energetic people with a growing democracy and burgeoning market-
based competitive economy. The Russian people need to be tied to the 
Western World.
  Mr. Speaker, if the Government of the United States does not involve 
Russia in NATO, this country will have made the most critical foreign 
policy mistake in the last half of the 20th century.
  The key question we face is whether we will address this issue of 
NATO expansion on the basis of common sense and our long-term national 
interest, or will we allow NATO expansion to continue to be a political 
football for various domestic audiences and ethnic groups? Clearly a 
balance must be struck between the legitimate interests of central 
Europe and Russia. The nations of central Europe have emerged from 
Soviet domination into an uncertain era where their sovereign rights of 
self-determination and self-defense have become real, but they have yet 
to be fully defined.
  The United States in NATO must help give life and definition to those 
rights through thoughtful and effective steps, including membership in 
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. However, we must be mindful of 
the fact that nothing we do will change geography. Poland will always 
be next door to Russia whether it is a member of NATO or not, so Poland 
and NATO must deal with the realities of the

[[Page H1109]]

neighborhood. We can ignore, offend, and alienate Russia, and that will 
guarantee endless tension in Central Europe, or we can seek to be good 
neighbors and expect similar behavior from Russia.

  Russia also has legitimate rights of self-determination and self-
defense. It has an understandable concern with NATO expansion right to 
its doorstep. Imagine our concern if an international alliance was on 
our border and it included nations that were hostile to us in the 
recent past. We must not ignore or gloss over those concerns. We must 
deal with them openly and honestly so that the Russian people can see 
that the intentions of the American people and its Government are clear 
and that the motives are honest.
  We must not assume that as victors of the cold war we can impose any 
conditions we wish on the losers. The allies made that mistake at the 
end of the First World War. We had won the war in 1918, and we lost the 
peace in 1919 by forcing on a vanquished Germany a Treaty of Versailles 
that every thoughtful person knew was completely unreasonable, harsh, 
and ultimately unsustainable. The result was not a lasting peace but a 
temporary truce between two great world wars. We must not repeat that 
mistake.
  Mr. Speaker, let us work to involve Russia with the West and its 
major political institutions, the European Community and the North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization. Such involvement will result in a much 
more peaceful 21st century.

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