[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 302 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 302

 A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate to support Ukraine's 
     accession into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 19, 2023

  Mr. Graham (for himself and Mr. Blumenthal) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate to support Ukraine's 
     accession into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Whereas the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was established to provide 
        ``for [the] collective defence and for the preservation of peace and 
        security'' of its members through promoting cooperation and committing 
        them to democracy, individual liberty, the rule of law, and the peaceful 
        resolution of disputes;
Whereas, on August 24, 1991, Ukraine became a sovereign, independent nation and 
        started a long process of reforms with the goal of achieving democracy, 
        transparency, and rule of law;
Whereas, on December 5, 1994, Ukraine signed the Budapest Memorandum and 
        surrendered its nuclear weapons, the third largest stockpile in the 
        world at the time, in exchange for nonbinding security guarantees from 
        the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Russian Federation;
Whereas, on April 3, 2008, heads of state and government of the member countries 
        of NATO signed the Bucharest Summit Declaration, which stated, ``NATO 
        welcomes Ukraine's and Georgia's Euro-Atlantic aspirations for 
        membership in NATO. We agreed today that these countries will become 
        members of NATO. Both nations have made valuable contributions to 
        Alliance operations'';
Whereas, on February 20, 2014, the Russian Federation and its proxies launched 
        an unprovoked invasion of Crimea and annexed the peninsula, and has 
        illegally occupied the peninsula since;
Whereas, on April 6, 2014, the Russian Federation and its proxies launched an 
        operation in the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces of Ukraine and have 
        illegally occupied portions of the Donbas region since;
Whereas, on February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation launched a full-scale, 
        unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, a sovereign nation that borders Poland, 
        Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, all of whom are members of NATO;
Whereas, on September 30, 2022, Ukraine formally applied to join NATO, and 
        President Volodymyr Zelensky stated, ``We are taking our decisive step 
        by signing Ukraine's application for accelerated accession to NATO.'';
Whereas, on June 17, 2023, President Vladimir Putin confirmed that the Russian 
        Federation had begun to deploy tactical nuclear weapons within the 
        Republic of Belarus, further increasing the threat posed by the Russian 
        Federation to Ukraine, surrounding NATO countries, allies, partners, and 
        United States troops stationed in the region;
Whereas, on July 7, 2023, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg stated that, 
        at the NATO Summit 2023, NATO leaders ``will agree a multi-year program 
        of assistance to ensure full interoperability between the Ukrainian 
        Armed Forces and NATO'' and ``will reaffirm that Ukraine will become a 
        member of NATO and unite on how to bring Ukraine closer to its goal'';
Whereas, on August 24, Ukraine celebrates their independence day and 
        commemorates the date on which they left the Soviet Union to become a 
        sovereign and democratic state;
Whereas NATO members ``are determined to safeguard the freedom, common heritage 
        and civilisation of their peoples'', which Ukraine has done since the 
        first day of the Russian Federation's unprovoked full-scale invasion 
        more than 500 days ago; and
Whereas, with support from NATO members and partner nations around the world, 
        Ukraine continues to counter the Russian Federation's aggression: Now, 
        therefore be it
    Resolved,

SECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

    The Senate--
            (1) stands with the people of Ukraine and supports the 
        accession of Ukraine into NATO as soon as possible;
            (2) urges the President to engage with NATO leaders to 
        develop a clear, comprehensive pathway for Ukraine's accession 
        into NATO;
            (3) views the accession of Ukraine into NATO as critical to 
        preventing future wars, promoting peace, and ensuring the 
        future security of Europe and the world; and
            (4) supports the Government and people of Ukraine in this 
        unprovoked war that has stretched over 500 days, as they 
        continue to defend their sovereignty and fight to remain an 
        independent, free, and democratic nation.

SEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this resolution may be construed as authorizing the use 
of military force or the introduction of United States forces into 
hostilities.
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