[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9051]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                 CONGRATULATING THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Foreign 
Relations Committee be discharged from consideration of S. Con. Res. 
110, and that the Senate then proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk 
will report the concurrent resolution by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 110) congratulating 
     the Republic of Latvia on the tenth anniversary of the 
     reestablishment of its independence from the rule of the 
     former Soviet Union.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
concurrent resolution and the preamble be agreed to, en bloc, the 
motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements 
relating to the concurrent resolution be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 110) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                            S. Con. Res. 110

       Whereas the United States had never recognized the forcible 
     incorporation of the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and 
     Lithuania into the former Soviet Union;
       Whereas the declaration on May 4, 1990, of the 
     reestablishment of full sovereignty and independence of the 
     Republic of Latvia furthered the disintegration of the former 
     Soviet Union;
       Whereas Latvia since then has successfully built democracy, 
     passed legislation on human and minority rights that conform 
     to European and international norms, ensured the rule of law, 
     developed a free market economy, and consistently pursued a 
     course of integration into the community of free and 
     democratic nations by seeking membership in the European 
     Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; and
       Whereas Latvia, as a result of the progress of its 
     political and economic reforms, has made, and continues to 
     make, a significant contribution toward the maintenance of 
     international peace and stability by, among other actions, 
     its participation in NATO-led peacekeeping operations in 
     Bosnia and Kosovo: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress hereby--
       (1) congratulates Latvia on the occasion of the tenth 
     anniversary of the reestablishment of its independence and 
     the role it played in the disintegration of the former Soviet 
     Union; and
       (2) commends Latvia for its success in implementing 
     political and economic reforms, which may further speed the 
     process of that country's integration into European and 
     Western institutions.

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