U.S. House of Representatives Bill Supporting NATO

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the following bill in January. It was introduced January 17 and passed January 22. The vote was overwhelmingly in favour, 357-22 with 54 representatives not voting. The bill is now before the Senate. If passed by a similar margin it is sufficient to overturn an expected veto by President Trump, which requires a 2/3 majority in both houses.

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To reiterate the support of the Congress of the United States for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

(1) The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which came into being through the North Atlantic Treaty, which entered into force on April 4, 1949, between the United States of America and the other founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has served as a pillar of international peace and stability, a critical component of United States security, and a deterrent against adversaries and external threats.

(2) The House of Representatives affirmed in H. Res. 397, on June 27, 2017, that;

(A) NATO is one of the most successful military alliances in history, deterring the outbreak of another world war, protecting the territorial integrity of its members, and seeing the Cold War through to a peaceful conclusion;
(B) NATO remains the foundation of United States foreign policy to promote a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace;
(C) the United States is solemnly committed to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's principle of collective defence as enumerated in Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty; and
(D) the House of Representatives --

(i) strongly supports the decision at the NATO Wales Summit in 2014 that each alliance member would aim to spend at least 2 per cent of its nation's gross domestic product on defence by 2024;
(ii) condemns any threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity, freedom and democracy of any NATO ally; and

(iii) welcomes the Republic of Montenegro as the 29th member of the NATO Alliance.

(1) the President shall not withdraw the United States from NATO; and
(2) the case Goldwater v. Carter is not controlling legal precedent with respect to the withdrawal of the United States from a treaty.

(1) to remain a member in good standing of NATO;
(2) to reject any efforts to withdraw the United States from NATO, or to indirectly withdraw from NATO by condemning or reducing contributions to NATO structures, activities, or operations, in a manner that creates a de facto withdrawal;
(3) to continue to work with NATO members to meet their 2014 Wales Defense Investment Pledge commitments; and
(4) to support robust United States funding for the European Deterrence Initiative, which increases the ability of the United States and its allies to deter and defend against Russian aggression.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no funds are authorized to be appropriated, obligated, or expended to take any action to withdraw the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty, done at Washington, DC on April 4, 1949, between the United States of America and the other founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

U.S. House of Representatives Bill Supporting NATO

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Events Related to Establishment of NATO