Salud Ortiz Carbajal: “Mr. Chair, in the spirit of bipartisanship, I rise to speak in support of my colleague from Georgia's amendment to…”

“Mr. Chair, in the spirit of bipartisanship, I rise to speak in support of my colleague from Georgia's amendment to authorize the Baltic Security Initiative. This amendment comes up at a crucial time. Just last week, the administration announced the U.S. would be pulling out of all security assistance programs for Europe, including the BSI. I have had the privilege of traveling to the Baltic. When we speak with the people there, it is not a question of if Russia will invade. It is a matter of when. Now is the time to stand firm in our support of these allied nations to deter Russian aggression. What type of signal does cutting support send to the Kremlin? Cutting off the BSI is a massive gift to Putin. Deterring a war between Russia and NATO is in our best national security interests. Mr. Chair, I urge a ``yes'' vote.”