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Risch, Menendez Applaud Committee Passage of Allies and Partners Resolution

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), ranking member and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today applauded committee passage of a resolution they introduced last week that reaffirms the importance of U.S. alliances and the unique strategic advantage they provide to the United States.

“The United States and our allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific and Europe face a challenging security environment of the 21st century, and we must continue to sustain and strengthen concrete cooperation,” said Ranking Member Risch. “Today, the committee reaffirmed this commitment by unanimously passing my resolution with Senator Menendez that calls on the Biden Administration to prioritize cooperation in defense, technology, and other areas to deepen and expand U.S. partnerships. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the full Senate to pass this important legislation soon.”

“From competing with China to defeating the coronavirus pandemic, 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. We must stand with our closest friends because it is in our national interest to do so.”

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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