[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 32 (Thursday, February 16, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                             Foreign Policy

  Mr. President, on an entirely different matter, Putin's brutal war on 
Ukraine has forced both us Americans and our friends in Europe to take 
a long, hard look at our country's commitments to military spending and 
self-defense.
  NATO and the West have let important capabilities actually atrophy 
over time: like defense funding; like military modernization; like 
looking after our defense industrial base, which creates good American 
jobs, ensures our own security, and allows us to be the arsenal for our 
friends and allies.
  It serves America's core national interests for us to exercise strong 
leadership in the world. Our security and Europe's security are 
interlinked. Our economies are intertwined. But the rest of NATO must 
do more to follow our lead: increase defense spending, upgrade their 
capabilities, and put skin in the game.
  Tomorrow, I will be taking this message directly to our European 
friends in person. With a number of our colleagues, I will be traveling 
to the Munich Security Conference. I will come as a staunch supporter 
of NATO, but I will also come with homework assignments for our 
European friends. I will speak as a friend, but I will speak frankly.
  Hard power is what kept the peace during the Cold War. Our allies 
simply have to reinvest in hard power. In the short term, both America 
and our allies need to serve our own interests by investing in the 
munitions and weapons systems that will help Ukraine defeat the 
invasion.
  But this chapter of realism and resolve can't end with Ukraine, 
because the long-term threats and challenges that we face actually go 
much deeper. A nuclear-armed Russia poses a threat to the United States 
and to NATO. And China poses an even greater threat still to American 
interests and those of our allies.
  These challenges are multifaceted; they are global; and they are 
actually only growing. So I look forward to talking to our allies in 
Munich, both about America's resolve to lead and Europe's 
responsibility to shoulder more of the load.