Shaheen discussed importance of strengthening our alliances, empowering women and girls around the world and continuing to support Ukraine
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered opening remarks at the nominations hearing for U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) to be Secretary of State. In her first remarks as Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Shaheen emphasized the need to work in a bipartisan way to advance NATO, support Ukraine and address the developing situation in Syria. She also raised the importance of empowering women and girls and ensuring their inclusion in conflict negotiations, specifically citing her bipartisan Women, Peace and Security Act that was signed into law in 2017. You can watch her remarks here.
In part, the Ranking Member said: “One point that we’ve always agreed on, the Chairman and I, is the need to work together so this Committee can function more effectively. That means holding hearings, advancing bipartisan legislation and confirming career foreign service officers quickly. I believe it’s in our national security interest to have our embassies fully staffed and to confirm career ambassadors with the requisite expertise.”
She concluded by saying: “The list of challenges facing America is very long. And so, Senator Rubio, if you are confirmed, I hope we can work together to continue to promote American interests [as we have] seen around the world the importance of America’s role.”
The Ranking Member also asked Senator Rubio what he will do to ensure that career foreign service officers are put into place around the world, emphasized the need for continued bipartisan support for Ukraine and raised the importance of engaging in NATO and our alliances. You can watch the Senator’s questions here.
The Ranking Member’s remarks, as delivered, are below.
Well, thank you very much, Chairman Risch. Congratulations on your new role. As you point out, while this may be our first Foreign Relations Committee hearing together in these new roles, it’s certainly not our first time working together. We came in as governors, so we like to get things done. We’ve also had this same role in 2017 on the Small Business Committee. So, I look forward to working with you and to our opportunity for this committee to get a lot of work done.
I want to also congratulate the new members of the Committee. Republicans McCormick, Daines, Scott, Lee, Curtis, and Cornyn, and on the Democratic side, Jacky Rosen. Nice to have you all on the committee.
One point that we’ve always agreed on, the Chairman and I, is the need to work together so this Committee can function more effectively. That means holding hearings, it means advancing bipartisan legislation, it means confirming career foreign service officers quickly. I believe it’s in our national security interest to have our embassies fully staffed and to confirm career ambassadors with the requisite expertise. Which is why it was important to both of us to have Senator Rubio's hearing as soon as possible, and Senator Rubio, welcome. You and I have also had a good working relationship for many years. I believe you have the skills and are well qualified to serve as Secretary of State.
But today I want to find out a little more about what this administration is thinking about American foreign policy and the State Department in particular. As I said, I believe this Committee has a responsibility to get your team out in the field, and we hope you will send us qualified, experienced and well-vetted nominees. I know you already have an expert group of career foreign nominees before you that was not considered under the last Congress. I hope we will see many of those nominees resubmitted to this Committee soon.
On policy, I want to start by hearing from you on Ukraine and NATO. There is strong bipartisan support, as you know, in the Senate for Ukraine. There is a clear understanding that we can’t trust Putin, and I'm concerned that if Vladimir Putin wins in Ukraine he’s not going to stop. President Trump has repeatedly said that he plans to end the Ukraine war within 24 hours of his inauguration. It’s been reported that his proposals would give away Ukrainian territory to Vladimir Putin. Now, I can’t speak on behalf of Ukraine, and President Zelenskyy has said he is open to a peace agreement. But I am concerned both for the Ukrainian people, who have sacrificed so much — about the message that abandoning Ukraine would send not just to our allies but also to our adversaries. And not just Russia, but to China, North Korea and Iran.
Our allies, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, our partnerships and alliances, like AUKUS and NATO, are all looking very closely, and watching what we’re going to do. I believe these alliances are one of the United States’ greatest assets. What happens in Ukraine also effects emerging democratic nations and civil society movements. From Belarus to the Balkans to the Black Sea to Georgia, it impacts us here at home as well. I know that for so many Americans, this might seem like a distant war. But as we know, what happens in Ukraine doesn’t stay in Ukraine. The war has caused food and gas prices to go up. It’s affected day-to-day lives of Americans.
So, Senator Rubio, I know that in the past you have supported Ukraine. You introduced legislation that would ban U.S. recognition of territory annexed by Russia. We were both cosponsors of Chairman Risch’s resolution recognizing Russian genocide in Ukraine. But the path forward is uncertain, and I hope today you will lay out some of the administration’s plans for Ukraine.
I would also like to hear from you on the Middle East and Syria, in particular. In recent months, we have seen the dismantling of much of Iran's axis of resistance, including the fall of Assad, one of Iran's most brutal proxies. One of our goals should be to get humanitarian assistance immediately to the Syrian people who have suffered for so many years and to capitalize on this historic opportunity to sideline not only Iran, but Russia, as we help rebuild Syria.
I also want to underline that whether it’s food insecurity or sexual violence that accompanies war, and whether we’re talking about Sudan or Haiti or Afghanistan, Ukraine or Gaza, that it is women who often bear the brunt of these conflicts. They should have a seat at the table when it comes to resolving them.
And that’s not just a sentiment, it’s also backed up by data. Because we know that when women participate in conflict negotiations, peace is 35% more likely to last at least 15 years. That’s why we passed the Women, Peace and Security Act in 2017. It was signed into law by President Trump during his first term, and I hope that in his second term we can build on this effort. It’s one of the reasons I’m pleased we now have three women on the Foreign Relations Committee — Senator Duckworth and Senator Rosen. It’s the first time since I've been here there’s been three women on the committee. And I'm interested to hear your vision for the State Department's Office of Global Women’s Issues and more broadly how the administration will work to empower women and girls on the global stage.
As Chairman Risch has said, the list of challenges facing America is very long. And so, Senator Rubio, if you are confirmed, I hope we can work together to continue to promote American interests — that we have seen around the world the importance of America’s role in the world.
###