June 18, 2025
Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mr. Tillis) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
Celebrating the June 2025 North Atlantic Treaty Organization Summit in the Hague, the Netherlands, and reaffirming priorities pertaining to transatlantic security and our commitment to NATO.
Whereas the June 2025 NATO Summit (also known as the Hague Summit
), which will take place on June 24th and 25th, 2025 in the Hague, the Netherlands, will convene all 32 NATO Allies and many NATO Partners, including Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific nations of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and the Republic of Korea;
Whereas the Hague Summit will take place during the fourth year of the Russian Federation’s unprovoked, illegal, full-scale war against Ukraine;
Whereas, following calls from the United States Government to increase defense spending among European Allies, the Hague Summit is expected to revise NATO Allies’ defense spending pledge from 2 percent of each country's gross domestic product that was agreed to through the 2014 Wales Summit Declaration, to a reported target of 5 percent of each country's gross domestic product, which includes a commitment to spend 1.5 percent of each country's gross domestic product on investments in defense-related infrastructure and capabilities;
Whereas Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty, done at Washington April 4, 1949—
(1)
establishes NATO’s open-door policy; and
(2)
permits the admission of any European country whose government is willing and able to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area and assume the requirements and responsibilities of membership;
Whereas NATO continues to provide critical leadership to maintain stability in the Western Balkans, particularly through the Kosovo Force (KFOR) and NATO Headquarters Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which closely coordinates with the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Operation Althea, the European Union force that is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the General Framework Agreement for Bosnia and Herzegovina (also known as the Dayton Agreement
or the Dayton Accords
), done at Dayton November 21, 1995;
Whereas each NATO communique since the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has acknowledged Russia as a significant and direct threat to NATO Allies;
Whereas the Russian Federation, in addition to continuing its campaign of aggression and violence against the people of Ukraine, has conducted hybrid warfare against NATO Allies, including by weaponizing its energy exports, destroying undersea cables, and perpetrating cyberattacks; and
Whereas the Hague Summit will invite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss NATO’s continued support for Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression.
Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate—
(1)
reaffirms the enduring bipartisan commitment of the United States Senate to the North Atlantic Treaty and the United States’ obligations to NATO’s collective defense under Article 5 of the Treaty;
(2)
(A)
welcomes increased defense spending by NATO Allies;
(B)
recognizes that 23 NATO Allies have met their Wales Summit pledge to spend at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product on defense; and
(C)
encourages the remaining NATO Allies to accelerate efforts to meet such target;
(3)
welcomes the ambition of the Hague Summit to increase the defense and defense-related spending target to 5 percent of gross domestic product and encourages the United States Government to meet this benchmark;
(4)
continues to support the open-door policy permitting any European nation to consider pursuing NATO membership;
(5)
(A)
acknowledges NATO’s role in promoting peace and stability in the Western Balkans; and
(B)
encourages NATO to sustain a robust focus on this region, especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina; and
(6)
welcomes NATO’s continued support for Ukraine through the Ukraine Defense Contact Group and the Compressive Assistance Package for Ukraine and encourages all NATO Allies to continue significant support for Ukraine in sustaining its fight against Russian aggression.