Expressing Support for the Sovereign Decision of Finland and Sweden to Apply to Join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) As Well As Calling on All Members of Nato to Ratify the Protocols of Accession Swiftly
Floor Speech
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Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1130) expressing support for the sovereign decision of Finland and Sweden to apply to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as well as calling on all members of NATO to ratify the protocols of accession swiftly, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows: H. Res. 1130
Whereas Finland and Sweden have made a historic decision to deepen their security ties with the transatlantic community;
Whereas a more resilient security architecture in Europe advances democracy, human rights, and values consistent with the North Atlantic Treaty;
Whereas, on April 4, 1949, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, hereinafter referred to as NATO, to serve as a defensive alliance based on promoting democratic values and the peaceful mediation of disputes;
Whereas NATO membership is open to ``any other European state in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area'';
Whereas Finland and Sweden are European states with strong democratic foundations that share the transatlantic community's dedication to the rule of law and the peaceful resolution of disputes;
Whereas Finland and Sweden have been members of NATO's Partnership for Peace program since 1994 and have contributed to NATO-led operations in the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq;
Whereas NATO established the Partnership Interoperability Initiative at the Wales Summit in 2014 to develop military- to-military interoperability between select partner nations enabling them to contribute to future crisis management, including NATO-led operations;
Whereas Finland and Sweden were designated inaugural Enhanced Opportunities Partners at the Wales Summit in 2014;
Whereas the hard-fought post-World War II European security architecture has been upended by the Russian Federation's cruel full-scale invasion of Ukraine which began on February 24, 2022;
Whereas the Russian Federation's invasion has fomented the worst European humanitarian crisis since World War II with 4,339 civilian deaths, 4.8 million Ukrainian refugees across Europe, and 7.1 million more internally displaced within Ukraine, according to the United States Agency for International Development as of June 10, 2022;
Whereas Finland and Sweden's populations expressed support for NATO membership;
Whereas Finland and Sweden's highly capable militaries are interoperable with NATO forces and would increase and fortify NATO's collective security by increasing the security and stability of the Baltic Sea region and Northern Europe;
Whereas officials of the Russian Federation issued threats directed at Finland and Sweden prior to their decision to exercise their sovereign right to apply for NATO membership;
Whereas despite these threats from the Russian Federation, Finland and Sweden's national institutions have reviewed their policies of military nonalignment and their governments and parliaments have expressed support for applying for NATO membership; and
Whereas in the best interests of their respective peoples, the European security architecture, the rule of international law, and democracy in Europe, Finland and Sweden have announced their support for NATO membership: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) expresses support for Finland and Sweden's sovereign and historic decision to apply to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO);
(2) recognizes that Finland and Sweden's sovereign and historic decision to apply to NATO is reflective of the will of those respective governments' peoples;
(3) urges all members of NATO to meet the two-percent defense spending pledge as agreed upon during the 2014 Wales Summit;
(4) opposes any attempt by the Russian Federation to act in an adverse way in response to Finland and Sweden's sovereign and historic decision to apply to join NATO;
(5) recognizes that the accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO requires all 30 Allies to sign and ratify protocols of accession; and
(6) calls on the member states of NATO to formally support the accession of Finland and Sweden into NATO.
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Mr. COSTA. Res. 1130, as amended.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Chairman Keating's resolution expressing support for the sovereign decision of Finland and Sweden to apply for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, also known as NATO, and calling on all members of NATO to swiftly ratify the protocols of accession.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February of this year, the world has changed. The world has watched as Vladimir Putin ordered his military to march through Ukraine, brutally attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure, making it exceptionally clear that his senseless imperial aspirations go far beyond the Donbas and even Ukraine in its entirety. As a matter of fact, he has stated such.
In response, our transatlantic allies and partners have had to completely rethink, as is clear, our security postures, tighten our ranks, and counter global challenges.
In response to the Russian Federation's unthinkable aggression in Ukraine, Sweden and Finland, both long-term security partners of the United States and NATO as a whole, have made the sovereign decision to apply for NATO membership. This did not come about easily or automatically.
Both Chairman Keating and I believe Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO presents a strong, unified message against Putin's aggression in Ukraine, and this would support peace and the values that we all adhere to in the NATO alliance. Finland and Sweden's militaries, already equipped with modern technology and weapons, some of which have already been delivered to Ukraine, are fully interoperable with NATO systems, which makes them a good fit.
Additionally, NATO's land border with Russia will now include significantly more territory, thereby acting as a greater deterrence to Russian threats and aggression. Their accession will also bolster NATO's capabilities in the Baltic Sea region, building on the capabilities of our Baltic partners, as well as Poland, who have each been steadfast in their commitments to countering Russian aggression and responding to this grave humanitarian crisis that is Russia's responsibility and Russia's responsibility solely on their part.
For this decision, as Finnish President Niinisto has rightly said, when Vladimir Putin looks in the mirror, he has only himself to blame. Putin's entire warfighting efforts--the bombings, the airstrikes, the ground movements--have been counterproductive. Instead, Putin and the military of the Russian Federation, as I and many others have said, have committed war crimes, forced Ukrainians from their homes into filtration camps and deported them to far-away Russian territories, and singlehandedly instigated the largest humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II.
Despite his goals of dividing the transatlantic alliance, Putin has instead united us more resolutely than ever before against his attempt to spread hate and violence across the globe and to create more division. Clearly, that has been his goal, and it has been his goal for years. In addition, individuals from around Europe, most notably Central Europe, have welcomed those fleeing violence in Ukraine in their own homes in Poland, Romania, and many other European countries. It is really an incredible humanitarian effort that these central European countries have engaged in, and it has been heartening for the entire world to see.
Bearing the events of the last few months in mind, this resolution expresses support for Finland and Sweden's monumental decision to apply for NATO membership. Furthermore, this resolution echoes the leadership role that Congress and this administration have taken in uniting the transatlantic alliance and the world in support of Ukraine.
This did not happen overnight. President Biden last year began working closely with our NATO allies, sharing intelligence, working together to build on that alliance, including more recently Congress providing over $50 billion in support for Ukraine's warfighting effort and the immense humanitarian crisis that has resulted. These funds have been crucial in ensuring that Ukraine can continue their fight, and it has provided leadership for our other European allies to do the same. This is a fight for democracy, a fight for freedom, and it is a fight that Ukrainians must win. This is the test of our time, and President Zelenskyy has stood up, reminding all of us that the price of freedom is not free, and those brave Ukrainian people, how much they have done to show the entire world that they stand for their sovereignty.
However, this resolution would not have been possible without the bipartisan support of many of my colleagues, who have long supported the NATO alliance, like Congressman Turner and so many others. This includes the lead on this resolution, Chairman Keating, as well as the lead original cosponsors on this resolution, House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Energy, the Environment, and Cyber, Ranking Member Brian Fitzpatrick, as well as Representatives Eric Swalwell and Ann Wagner, and Representatives Connolly and Turner of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
In addition, I thank all of the chairs of the House Finland and Sweden Caucuses for signing on as original cosponsors of this legislation.
Finally, I also specifically thank Chairman Meeks and Ranking Member McCaul of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who have been united in these efforts over the recent months.
I also express my gratitude to Leader Hoyer and Chairman Meeks for allowing this resolution to move to the floor so expeditiously.
Through this resolution, the House will loudly and clearly welcome Finland and Sweden into the NATO alliance, a clear sign of transatlantic unity in response to Vladimir Putin's brutal ambition.
I was in Brussels in February, 2 days before the invasion, and I have never seen NATO as united perhaps since the Cold War.
The fact is that we have a strong history, and we have the opportunity to be bolstered by the strength of their military alliance as well as the democratic resolve of their governments.
I thank Ranking Member Turner for his leadership and for his support of our common alliance and our defense in these critical and dangerous times that we are living in.
I want to reflect on why I think this resolution is so important, and it is an inflection point that Chairman Keating and so many of us feel with regard to global history. As I said, this is a test of our time as to whether or not democracies will be willing to stand together for the common values we share, for the rule of law, for a rules-based economy, and for all the freedoms we cherish that we share in common.
Simply stated, this is a choice about good and evil. For the first time in eight decades, we have seen a full-scale land invasion in Europe instigated, resulting in an unprecedented humanitarian crisis.
Think about this. The alliances that we have created post-World War II, beginning with the Marshall Plan and then NATO and the European Union, and everything that has followed since that, have resulted in one of the largest peacetime periods in Europe in over 1,000 years. Think about that.
What we have also, obviously, learned the hard way is that these unconscionable crimes committed against the Ukrainian people, I think, constitute a form of genocide.
I said in a speech several months ago that, in my view, after Bucha, President Putin should be considered a war criminal along with all who have been involved in these horrific crimes that we have seen committed and see daily--hospitals, schools, apartment buildings, innocent children, and citizens being attacked.
The brave men and women of Ukraine and their leadership, President Zelenskyy, have reminded us once again that we who share the common values of democracies must stand together.
We are at the front lines in this fight for freedom, and Ukraine today is sadly paying the heavy price. But they have demonstrated an importance to all of us of unity in the face of Putin's catastrophic and violent attack. They have demonstrated why our support matters, and it does. Crucially, they have proven that without a doubt, as was said by my colleague and friend, Congressman Hoyer, democratic values will prevail over an authoritarian ideology. That is why we must ensure that Putin fails in his war of aggression.
Finland's and Sweden's historic and sovereign decisions to apply for NATO membership create an echo of transatlantic unity on this issue, and this resolution represents strong bipartisan support here in Congress for Ukraine.
I thank my colleagues on the other side. Chairman Keating leads this NATO resolution in response to the alliance, our transatlantic alliance, which has stood up to the aggression of Russia in the face of unprecedented, unprovoked aggression, and we have come together to do the right thing.
To my colleagues in the Senate, who will be taking up these articles of accession shortly, I urge you to demonstrate full support for Finland and Sweden to join the NATO alliance.
As to my colleagues in this Chamber, I urge your support, as well, for this resolution so that the United States Government can speak with one voice, one voice in the resolute support of our Nordic allies and unwavering support for Ukraine's fight for freedom and their democracy.
Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me in supporting this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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