Menendez, Risch Applaud Senate Passage of Allies and Partners Resolution

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, applauded yesterday’s Senate passage of their resolution reaffirming the importance of U.S. alliances and the unique strategic advantage they provide to the United States.

“As events in Ukraine underscore, there is no question we need to reinvest in strong coalitions to promote our nation’s interests and address our most pressing challenges,” said Chairman Menendez. “A go-it alone approach to foreign policy has thrown our alliances into disarray and provided openings to our adversaries for far too long. With this resolution, we make clear the U.S. Congress understands we must band together with our closes allies and partners, pool our resources, expertise, and might, so that we can be better equipped to meet global challenges and defend our democratic values. I’m pleased to see the Senate speak in unison by approving this proposal to stand with our closest friends because it is in our national interest to do so.”

“The United States and our allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific and Europe face a challenging security environment, and it is imperative we continue to sustain and strengthen concrete cooperation,” said Ranking Member Risch. “This week, the United States Senate reaffirmed this commitment by passing our resolution that calls on the administration to prioritize cooperation in defense, technology, and other areas to deepen and expand U.S. partnerships.”

The resolution:

• Reinforces U.S. defense treaty commitments to allies in the Indo-Pacific and Europe;
• Encourages the Biden Administration to deepen and expand commitments to the United States' closest allies, such as Australia, Japan, South Korea, and NATO;
• Encourages allies and partners to take on equitable and mutually beneficial burden-sharing arrangements;
• Calls on the Biden Administration to ensure U.S. policy and posture reflects the requirements of extended deterrence to preserve nonproliferation benefits, assure allies, and respond, if necessary, to nuclear and non-nuclear threats in defense of allies and partners.

Full text of the resolution as introduced can be found here.

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