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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the following opening remarks at a full committee nomination hearing. Witnesses included Mr. Reed Rubinstein to legal advisor of the State Department, The Honorable Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel, and The Honorable Kevin Cabrera...

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the statement below regarding the confirmation of Mr. Christopher Landau to serve as Deputy Secretary of State. “I’m thrilled that my colleagues have voted to confirm Mr. Landau to be Deputy Secretary of State. Mr. Landau previously...

WASHINGTON – This week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will convene for one nomination hearing, one full committee hearing, one subcommittee hearing, and one business meeting. Nomination Hearing: Mr. Reed Rubinstein to legal advisor of the State Department, The Honorable Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel, The Honorable Kevin Cabrera...

BOISE, Idaho – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the statement below following air strikes on the capital of Yemen: “I applaud the president’s decisive action in Yemen. With Iran’s support, the Houthis have operated with impunity for far too long, attacked American sailors, attacked...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) yesterday introduced the United States African Development Foundation Dissolution Act, which would reduce government bureaucracy and eliminate a primary source of waste, fraud, and abuse by abolishing the United States African...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, yesterday along with Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) led a group of nine bipartisan House and Senate colleagues in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlining their deep concern over Republika Srpska leader...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the following opening remarks at a full committee nominations hearing. Witnesses included The Honorable Peter Hoekstra to be ambassador to Canada, The Honorable George Glass to be ambassador to Japan, and The Honorable Ronald Johnson to be...

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after members approved the nomination of the Honorable Christopher Landau to be Deputy Secretary of State, the Honorable Michael John Rigas to be Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, and the Honorable...

WASHINGTON – This week, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will convene for one business meeting and one nomination hearing. Business Meeting - Date: Wednesday, March 12th, 2025 - Time: 10:00am - Location: United States Capitol, S-116 - This event will not be livestreamed - Members of the press interested in covering this event in person...

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, last week introduced the Mobilizing and Enhancing Georgia’s Options for Building Accountability, Resilience, and Independence (MEGOBARI) Act. This bipartisan legislation supports the people of Georgia as...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today introduced the Break Up Suspicious Transactions of Fentanyl Act, or the BUST FENTANYL Act, which would crack down on the import of deadly fentanyl and its precursors flowing from China, to Mexico,...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the following opening remarks at a full committee hearing titled “Advancing American Interests in the Western Hemisphere”. Witnesses included Dr. Joseph Ledford, Fellow and Assistant Director at Stanford’s Hoover Institution, and Ms....

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the statement below following President Trump’s address to a Joint Session of Congress this evening.   “Today, America faces threats from every corner of the world. Hostile powers like China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran have formed an...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the following opening remarks at a full committee nomination hearing. Witnesses included The Honorable Christopher Landau to be Deputy Secretary of State, The Honorable Michael John Rigas to be Deputy Secretary of State for Management and...

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Senator Shaheen (D-N.H.) today released the following statement regarding the government of Thailand’s forced return of Uyghur men back to China, where the Chinese government is actively committing genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities.  “The Thai government’s decision to send dozens...

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today introduced a resolution to condemn the Chinese government for its destruction of Hong Kong’s autonomy through the 2020 ‘national security law’ and the 2024 ‘Article 23 Ordinance’. Both laws give the...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statement regarding President Trump’s decision to revoke National Security Memorandum-20 (NSM-20), a Biden policy that purported to tie U.S. security assistance to human rights policy: “President Trump’s repeal of the...

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.), today released the following statement on reports that Thailand may imminently send 48 Uyghur men back to China, where the Chinese government is actively...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.), today introduced a resolution to oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s campaign to pressure the United States and other countries to accept its...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today released the following statements after their trip to the Munich Security Conference. “After attending the 2025 Munich Security Conference and speaking with our partners from around the world, I...