Benjamin Gilman: “I want to commend our former vice chairman of our Committee on International Relations, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr.…”

“I want to commend our former vice chairman of our Committee on International Relations, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bereuter), for introducing this bill, which I am pleased to cosponsor with him, and for his strong consistent support for NATO enlargement. Under the aegis of NATO, the past decade has shown a remarkable expansion of freedom in Europe without firing a single shot. It is ironic that our NATO allies have invoked the, and I quote, ``attack on one is an attack on all'' clause of NATO's treaty in the recent terrorist attacks on our own Nation from abroad. We have special reasons, therefore, to value the contributions that NATO has made in our own defense. Accordingly, it is in our own national interests that we need to bring as many democratic, stable and capable European nations as possible into NATO alliance. This bill makes it clear that the door to NATO membership remains open to other nations; and it is fitting, therefore, for Congress to ask the President to sign this measure into law, a NATO expansion policy declaration.”