,,iii #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #ece ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #f1 #bjah ,mr4 ,durbin 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,kaine1 ,mr4 ,cardin1 ,mr4 ,van ,hollen1 ,mrs4 ,feinstein1 ,mr4 ,brown1 ,mr4 ,merkley1 and ,mr4 ,markey7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,,resolution ,reaffirming the ,united ,states commitment to the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty ,organization4 ,whereas the ,united ,states1 ,canada1 ,belgium1 ,denmark1 ,france1 ,iceland1 ,italy1 ,luxemburg1 the ,netherlands1 ,norway1 ,portugal1 and the ,united ,kingdom in #aidi signed the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty1 which led to the foundation of the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty ,organization 7,,nato72 ,whereas ,,nato was created to deter ,soviet expansionism1 promote international peace1 stability1 and security1 and prevent the reemergence of nationalist militarism in ,europe through a strong ,north ,american presence and a closer trans-,atlantic alliance2 ,whereas1 since the formation of ,,nato1 the alliance has expanded to #bi members1 with others still aspiring to join2 ,whereas ,,nato is a vital component of the ,united ,states-led post-,world ,war ,,ii international order that has made the world safer and more prosperous2 ,whereas the aid and security umbrella the ,united ,states provided through ,,nato after ,world ,war ,,ii helped restore political stability and enabled an economic resurgence in ,western ,europe2 ,whereas1 during the ,cold ,war1 ,,nato helped unify the ,western alliance and successfully deter ,soviet threats2 ,whereas ,,nato conducted its first major crisis response operation in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 resulting in the ,dayton ,peace ,accords and facilitating the country's reconstruction in the wake of the #aiib-aiie war2 ,whereas ,,nato contributed to the cessation of the #aiih-aiii ,kosovo conflict through security1 stabilization1 and humanitarian efforts2 ,whereas ,,nato has served as an essential element of ,united ,states national security and a deterrent against external threats for #fi years2 ,whereas ,article #e of the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty is an integral part of ,,nato and states that the ,parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in ,europe or ,north ,america shall be considered an attack against them all2 ,whereas the first and only time to date ,,nato invoked ,article #e was less than #bd hours after the terrorist attacks against the ,united ,states on ,september #aa1 #bjja2 ,whereas ,,nato allies and partners1 including ,,nato aspirant countries ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 ,georgia1 ,macedonia1 and ,ukraine1 joined in assuring the security of the ,united ,states and the international community by serving alongside ,united ,states forces in ,afghanistan since #bjja2 ,whereas more than #a1ajj ,,nato ally and partner military personnel in ,afghanistan have lost their lives1 and thousands have been injured in service to the collective defense guarantee of ,,nato2 ,whereas multiple ,,nato members participated in the coalition against ,,isis by providing either military or humanitarian assistance2 ,whereas1 in the face of a burgeoning vacuum in global leadership1 ,russia is aggressively testing ,western democracies1 including through ongoing malicious cyber war capabilities2 ,whereas ,russia continues to challenge ,,nato1 including by-- 7#a7 deploying cruise missiles1 violating the ,intermediate-,range ,nuclear ,forces treaty2 7#b7 executing a suspected poisonous gas attack against ,sergei ,skripal and his daughter ,yulia within the borders of the ,united ,kingdom2 7#c7 occupying with military forces the sovereign territory of the ,european nations of ,ukraine1 ,georgia1 and ,moldova2 7#d7 waging cyberattacks against the ,united ,states and ,europe1 especially the ,baltics1 in an effort to undermine democracy and defraud national elections2 7#e7 conducting the largest iteration ever of the ,zapad1 an annual military exercise1 in ,belarus with an estimated #fj1jjj to #gj1jjj troops in an excessive show of military force close to ,,nato borders and in violation of the #bjaa ,vienna ,document2 7#f7 forcing ,latvia1 a ,,nato member1 to close down its commercial airspace due to ongoing ,russian military drills in the ,baltic ,sea2 7#g7 flying two ,russian bombers within #cj miles of ,united ,kingdom airspace2 and 7#h7 flying ,russian aircraft more than #aaj times above or near the ,baltic ,sea in a marked increase since its annexation of ,crimea1 including flying a ,russian jet within five feet of a ,united ,states reconnaissance plane flying in international airspace2 ,whereas the ,government of ,russia has continuously propped up ,president of ,syria ,bashar al-,assad and supported atrocities in ,syria1 including the use of violence and illegal chemical weapons against civilians1 resulting in the deaths of more than #djj1jjj ,syrians and the displacement of #aj1jjj1jjj others during ,syria's seven-year civil war2 ,whereas the displacement of millions of ,syrians has contributed to the worst migrant and refugee crisis since ,world ,war ,,ii1 with many ,syrian refugees undertaking perilous journeys to escape war and resettle in territories of ,,nato allies2 ,whereas1 during the presidency of ,barack ,obama1 ,,nato deployed greater resources and personnel to its eastern members in response to and to deter further ,russian aggression2 ,whereas ,president ,donald ,j4 ,trump has caused disquieting fissures in the trans-,atlantic alliance1 undermining faith in institutions and policies that comprise the post-,world ,war ,,ii international order2 ,whereas ,president ,trump's wavering and inconsistent statements about ,,nato have resulted in alliance members questioning the commitment of the ,united ,states to the alliance rather than focusing on the multitude of threats ,,nato faces on both sides of the ,atlantic2 ,whereas1 during the campaign for the ,united ,states presidency1 then-candidate ,trump repeatedly referred to the ,,nato alliance as obsolete2 ,whereas candidate ,trump on ,july #bj1 #bjaf1 also said if ,russia attacked ,baltic ,,nato members1 he would only offer support--a key tenet of the ,,nato charter--after reviewing if those nations had fulfilled their obligations to us2 ,whereas1 the next day1 ,john ,bolton said of the jarring comment1 ,i hope that ,donald ,trump retracts it42 ,whereas ,president ,trump subverted allied interests and flouted intelligence norms by reportedly revealing highly classified information to ,russian ,foreign ,minister ,sergei ,lavrov and ,ambassador ,sergey ,kislyak on ,may #aj1 #bjag1 in the ,oval ,office of the ,white ,house2 ,whereas1 during the #bjag ,,nato summit1 ,president ,trump alarmed allies by failing to commit publicly to honoring ,article #e if a ,united ,states ally is attacked2 ,whereas ,president ,trump's misguided withdrawal from the ,paris ,climate ,agreement puts the ,united ,states at odds with every other country on earth and ignores the climate change-related national security risks highlighted in a #bjag ,,nato report2 ,whereas ,president ,trump imposed unilateral import tariffs on ,european steel and aluminum1 further straining trans-,atlantic trade relations while possibly placing the ,united ,states in violation of ,world ,trade ,organization rules2 ,whereas ,president ,trump has acted antithetically to the ,,nato alliance by seemingly ignoring and dismissing malign ,russian actions against the ,united ,states and its allies2 ,whereas the ,united ,states1 the ,united ,kingdom1 ,france1 ,russia1 ,china1 ,germany1 and ,iran finalized the ,joint ,comprehensive ,plan of ,action 7,,jcpoa7 on ,july #ad1 #bjae1 to end ,iran's nuclear weapons program2 ,whereas ,chairman of the ,joint ,chiefs of ,staff ,joseph ,dunford stated on ,september #bf1 #bjag1 that the ,united ,states intelligence community assessment was that ,iran was in compliance with the agreement2 ,whereas ,secretary of ,defense ,james ,mattis stated1 under oath before ,congress on ,october #c1 #bjag1 that the ,,jcpoa is in ,america's national security interest and the ,united ,states should consider remaining party to the agreement2 ,whereas the head of ,united ,states ,central ,command1 ,joseph ,votel1 stated on ,march #ac1 #bjah1 that the ,,jcpoa addresses one of the principal threats we face from ,iran and it is in ,america's best interest to remain a party to the agreement2 ,whereas the then-,central ,intelligence ,agency ,director and ,secretary of ,state nominee ,mike ,pompeo stated on ,april #ab1 #bjah1 that there was no evidence of ,iranian noncompliance with the agreement2 ,whereas1 despite these statements1 overwhelming evidence1 and the appeals from several ,,nato allies1 ,president ,trump reinstated sanctions on the ,government of ,iran and unilaterally withdrew the ,united ,states from the ,,jcpoa on ,may #h1 #bjah2 ,whereas the ill-advised withdrawal of the ,united ,states from the ,,jcpoa and ensuing threats of related sanctions against its ,,nato allies immediately sowed further discord in the trans-,atlantic relationship and created an exploitable crack in the armor of the greatest military alliance in the world by eroding the trust of ,,nato member countries in the ,united ,states2 ,whereas the leaders of ,france1 ,germany1 and the ,united ,kingdom issued a joint statement on ,may #h1 #bjah1 expressing regret about the ,united ,states decision1 further damaging the alliance and plunging the global order into crisis2 ,whereas ,european ,council ,president ,donald ,tusk on ,may #af1 #bjah1 rebuked ,president ,trump for deteriorating relations between the ,united ,states and ,european allies1 stating the ,european ,union is no longer under any illusions that the ,united ,states is a trustworthy friend2 ,whereas hostile nations will seek to exploit the strained relationship between the ,united ,states and its ,,nato allies1 specifically bolstering ,russia's multifaceted strategy of fraying the relationships between ,,nato allies for its own benefit2 and ,whereas alliance leaders will come together ,july #aa-ab1 #bjah1 in ,brussels for a summit to further strengthen trans-,atlantic unity and delineate strategies to respond to evolving ,russian threats3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 reaffirms the long-standing and steadfast commitment of the ,united ,states to the ,,nato alliance1 including ,article ,v of the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty2 7#b7 recognizes that ,,nato continues to meet emerging and contemporary threats to the ,united ,states and its allies1 and serves as a critical deterrent to ,russia's destabilizing activities1 including through innovation such as the creation of a ,cyber ,operations ,center and collective action such as the ,enhanced ,forward ,presence mission2 7#c7 encourages the ,united ,states ,government to accept the recommendation of our ,,nato allies to combat jointly ,russian cyber warfare2 7#d7 honors the men and women who have served under ,,nato and promoted peace1 security1 and international cooperation since #aidi2 7#e7 encourages ,congress to promote the ,,nato alliance and trans-,atlantic ties whenever possible2 7#f7 urges ,president ,trump to unequivocally and definitively reaffirm the ,united ,states commitment to the trans-,atlantic alliance and to counter ,russian aggression1 especially at the ,july ,,nato summit in ,brussels2 and 7#g7 reaffirms the critical importance and security mission of ,,nato to the ,united ,states1 its allies1 and the trans-,atlantic partnership4