[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 19 (Monday, January 31, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S415-S416]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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 SENATE RESOLUTION 499--CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS 
            BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND THE BALTIC STATES

  Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Boozman, 
Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Braun, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Coons, Mr. 
Tillis, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Rubio, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. 
Collins, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Reed, and Ms. Stabenow) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                              S. Res. 499

       Whereas the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania 
     originally declared their independence in 1918;
       Whereas, in 1920, Soviet Russia signed treaties with 
     Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania recognizing their sovereignty 
     and renouncing all territorial claims over each Baltic State 
     in perpetuity;
       Whereas the United States established diplomatic relations 
     with Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania as independent countries 
     on July 28, 1922, and the United States and the Baltic States 
     have grown strong as partners for the past century;
       Whereas, on August 23, 1939, the Soviet Union and Nazi 
     Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which contained a 
     secret protocol dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of 
     influence, with the Baltic States ultimately being assigned 
     to the Soviet Union, leading soon after to the forcible 
     incorporation of the Baltic States into the Soviet Union;
       Whereas, following World War II, the Soviet Union forcibly 
     occupied the Baltic States, imposing its model of Soviet 
     totalitarianism for more than 5 decades;
       Whereas the United States never recognized the illegal 
     occupation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania by the Soviet 
     Union, instead maintaining 100 years of continuous diplomatic 
     relations with the Baltic States;
       Whereas, in August 1989, approximately 2,000,000 people 
     joined hands in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to form a 373-
     mile human chain across the 3 states known as the Baltic 
     Chain of Freedom;
       Whereas, in February 1990, the people of Lithuania 
     participated in the first free election to select a new 
     parliament, which promptly voted to restore independence, 
     making Lithuania the first occupied Soviet republic to 
     declare independence on March 11, 1990, a move subsequently 
     followed by Latvia on May 4, 1990, and Estonia on August 20, 
     1991;
       Whereas, in January 1991, Soviet military forces tried to 
     quash the growing independence restoration movement, leading 
     to approximately 14 Lithuanian deaths, 6 Latvian deaths, and 
     many injuries;
       Whereas, in February and March 1991, the people of 
     Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia voted overwhelmingly in 
     support of their respective independence restoration 
     referendums, which the United States recognized later that 
     year;
       Whereas the Baltic States helped pave the path for 
     democracy and freedom across Eastern Europe, leading to the 
     fall of the Soviet Union;
       Whereas, after the restoration of independence, the 
     economies of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania emerged as modern 
     market economies leading in technology and financial services 
     sectors;
       Whereas Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania continue to 
     demonstrate their commitment to advancing democratic values, 
     peace, and security through their membership and active 
     participation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization 
     (NATO), the European Union, and the Organisation for Economic 
     Co-operation and Development;
       Whereas the Baltic States have been loyal NATO allies, 
     contributing to regional and global security through 
     operations in Afghanistan and leadership in the NATO 
     Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Estonia, 
     the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence in 
     Latvia, and the NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence in 
     Lithuania;
       Whereas the Baltic States contribute to the security of the 
     Euro-Atlantic area by spending at least 2 percent of gross 
     domestic product for defense and to global security through 
     determined participation in international allied operations 
     and missions;
       Whereas Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania were among the first 
     countries to participate

[[Page S416]]

     in the National Guard State Partnership Program with the 
     Maryland, Michigan, and Pennsylvania National Guards, 
     respectively, and, since 1993, have provided additional 
     opportunities to enhance National Guard skills and improve 
     interoperability between the United States and Baltic forces;
       Whereas, in 2019, the United States and the Baltic States 
     signed the Security Cooperation Roadmaps, outlining joint 
     security cooperation priorities for 2019 to 2024;
       Whereas the Baltic States are actively involved in security 
     assistance, promotion of democracy, and protection of human 
     rights across Eastern Europe, including in Ukraine and 
     Belarus, in the face of aggression and an increase of troops 
     in Belarus by the Russian Federation and the manipulation of 
     the migrant crisis in Europe by the Lukashenko regime;
       Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation has 
     pursued an aggressive disinformation campaign in the Baltic 
     States, including intimidation of Western civilians and 
     troops stationed in Europe and abroad via hacking, 
     propaganda, and other cyberattacks, and has increased air 
     provocations in Eastern Europe;
       Whereas, since the restoration of independence, Estonia, 
     Latvia, and Lithuania have faced considerable aggressive 
     behavior, intimidation, and cyberattacks from the Russian 
     Federation and, as a result, have worked to shape total 
     defense strategies to counter intervention by the Russian 
     Federation;
       Whereas, after building trade ties with Taiwan, the 
     Government of Lithuania has faced severe economic and 
     diplomatic coercion from the People's Republic of China;
       Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China 
     has brazenly imposed a customs blockade on products from 
     Lithuania and imports containing Lithuanian parts, with the 
     European Union considering taking the matter to the World 
     Trade Organization as a violation of international trade 
     rules;
       Whereas, on December 21, 2021, in a call with Prime 
     Minister of Lithuania Ingrida Simonyte, Secretary of State 
     Tony Blinken underscored the ironclad solidarity of the 
     relationship of the United States with Lithuania as Lithuania 
     faces geopolitical challenges to regional stability, 
     security, and economic prosperity;
       Whereas, on January 5, 2022, at a joint press conference 
     with Foreign Minister of Germany Annalena Baerbock, Secretary 
     of State Blinken added, ``We have immediate concern about the 
     Government of China's attempts to bully Lithuania, a country 
     of fewer than three million people. China is pushing European 
     and American companies to stop building products with 
     components made in Lithuania or risk losing access to the 
     Chinese market, all because Lithuania chose to expand their 
     cooperation with Taiwan.'';
       Whereas, on January 24, 2022, the Secretary of Defense put 
     8,500 members of the Armed Forces on high alert for potential 
     deployment to Eastern Europe as part of a NATO response 
     force;
       Whereas support for the Baltic States by the United States 
     remains a crucial factor for countering such economic and 
     diplomatic coercion by the Government of the People's 
     Republic of China and ensuring security in the Baltic States 
     and complements the efforts of NATO to strengthen its 
     deterrence and defense posture, including an enhancing its 
     forward presence in the eastern part of the NATO Alliance 
     with multinational battlegroups;
       Whereas the Baltic States have been models for democratic 
     governance with strong institutions and respect for civil 
     liberties and the rule of law, which are cherished shared 
     values between the Baltic States and the United States; and
       Whereas, since the restoration of independence, the 
     democratic and economic development and progress of the 
     Baltic States has established Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania 
     as 3 shining beacons for freedom: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) celebrates 100 years of continuous diplomatic relations 
     between the United States and Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania;
       (2) looks forward to continued growth in diplomatic 
     relations between the Baltic States and the United States;
       (3) commits to providing continued support for the Baltic 
     States through economic and security cooperation, including 
     through the Baltic Security Initiative, further strengthening 
     transatlantic ties and regional presence through the North 
     Atlantic Treaty Organization;
       (4) recognizes the courage and resilience of the people of 
     Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania in their fight for freedom and 
     democracy in the face of aggressive behavior by the Russian 
     Federation;
       (5) stands in solidarity with Lithuania against economic 
     and diplomatic coercion by the People's Republic of China; 
     and
       (6) expresses the wish that the next 100 years of 
     friendship between the Baltic States and the United States 
     continue to build on the positive achievements and progress 
     made since the Baltic States restored their independence.

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