[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 17, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page S703]]
                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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   SENATE RESOLUTION 31--EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRATIC FORCES IN 
 SERBIA AND ENCOURAGING THE PEOPLE OF SERBIA TO REMAIN COMMITTED TO A 
                            DEMOCRATIC PATH

  Mr. VOINOVICH (for himself, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Hagel, and Mr. Lieberman) 
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                               S. Res. 31

       Whereas, in September 2000, the people of Serbia fought for 
     democracy by going to the streets to hold protests and 
     rallies until President Slobodan Milosevic was removed from 
     power and the Government of Serbia was handed over to 
     democratic forces;
       Whereas, in the following years, the democratic leadership 
     of Serbia worked to establish a democratic society, 
     functional rule of law, a free market economy, and respect 
     for human and minority rights;
       Whereas the President of Serbia, Boris Tadic, has expressed 
     publicly his commitment to the principles of democracy and 
     the dream of leading Serbia forward on this path;
       Whereas Serbia is a member of several international 
     organizations and has voiced its desire to become a member of 
     the European Union (EU);
       Whereas Serbia has enacted several military and defense 
     reforms to strengthen ties to its Western allies and the 
     North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Alliance;
       Whereas, on September 7, 2006, Serbia signed a Status of 
     Forces Agreement with the United States Government to 
     facilitate Serbia's participation in joint military exercises 
     and training;
       Whereas, on September 8, 2006, President Tadic commemorated 
     the beginning of Serbia's participation in the National Guard 
     State Partnership Program with the Ohio National Guard;
       Whereas, on December 14, 2006, Serbia was granted accession 
     to the NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP) program, along with 
     its neighbors, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, 
     initiating formal cooperation between NATO and Serbia;
       Whereas Serbia has transferred 36 individuals indicted for 
     war crimes to the International Criminal Tribunal for the 
     former Yugoslavia (ICTY), including Milosevic and some of his 
     top officials, and provided thousands of documents to the 
     Office of the Prosecutor of the ICTY;
       Whereas Serbia has taken some additional steps, under the 
     supervision of the ICTY and the international community, to 
     enact judicial reforms and establish special courts to try 
     individuals indicted for war crimes in Kosovo, Bosnia, and 
     Croatia;
       Whereas Serbia has failed to arrest war criminal Ratko 
     Mladic for the horrific crimes he committed at Srebrenica in 
     Bosnia and Herzegovina, which prevented Serbia's earlier 
     participation in the PfP program and its progression in EU 
     accession talks;
       Whereas, on January 21, 2007, Serbia will hold democratic 
     parliamentary elections to determine Serbia's future 
     leadership at this critical juncture in Serbia's history;
       Whereas Albanian parties in southern Serbia will 
     participate in the parliamentary elections for the first time 
     in over 15 years; and
       Whereas a strong, stable, and democratic Serbia is critical 
     to the future of the region: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the United States should be committed to a strong 
     relationship with a democratic Serbia as Serbia moves toward 
     its goals of membership in the European Union (EU) and 
     cooperation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation 
     (NATO);
       (2) the inclusion of Serbia in the NATO Partnership for 
     Peace Program was a critical step in bringing Serbia closer 
     to the Euro-Atlantic Alliance;
       (3) Serbia will now have the opportunity to enact defense 
     reforms and apply for a Membership Action Plan for NATO;
       (4) Serbia should continue its progress on reform, 
     including defense and judiciary reforms and reforms in the 
     area of human and minority rights;
       (5) Serbia should move quickly to fulfill its obligations 
     to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former 
     Yugoslavia, including by immediately arresting Ratko Mladic 
     and transferring him to the Hague because this step is 
     essential for Serbia to be admitted into the EU and NATO;
       (6) as Serbia continues to work toward integration in Euro-
     Atlantic institutions, the United States should continue and 
     increase its defense and security cooperation with the 
     Government of Serbia, including through education, training, 
     and technical cooperation, to assist Serbia in the reform 
     process and in fulfilling the requirements for membership in 
     NATO; and
       (7) the United States should remain a friend to the people 
     of Serbia as they continue on the path of democracy.

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