[Senate Report 110-34]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 74
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-34
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NATO FREEDOM CONSOLIDATION ACT OF 2007
_______
March 9, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Biden, from the Committee on Foreign Relations,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 494]
The Committee on Foreign Relations, having under
consideration a bill to endorse further enlargement of the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and to facilitate the
timely admission of new members to NATO, and for other
purposes, reports favorably thereon and recommends that the
bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose..........................................................1
II. Committee Action.................................................2
III. Cost Estimate....................................................2
IV. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
V. Changes in Existing Law..........................................3
I. Purpose
The NATO Freedom Consolidation Act of 2007 reaffirms United
States support for continued enlargement of NATO to democracies
that are able and willing to meet the responsibilities of
membership. In particular, the legislation calls for the timely
admission of Albania, Croatia, Georgia, Macedonia (FYROM), and
Ukraine to NATO and authorizes security assistance for these
countries in Fiscal Year 2008. Each of these countries has
clearly stated its desire to join NATO and is working hard to
meet the specified requirements for membership.
Eventual NATO membership for these five countries would be
a success for Europe, NATO, and the United States by continuing
to extend the zone of peace and security. Albania, Croatia, and
Macedonia (FYROM) have been making progress on reforms through
their participation in the NATO Membership Action Plan since
2002. Unfortunately, Georgia and Ukraine have not yet been
granted a Membership Action Plan but nevertheless have made
remarkable progress. This legislation will provide important
incentives and assistance to the countries to continue the
implementation of democratic, defense, and economic reforms.
Since the end of the Cold War, NATO has been evolving to
meet the new security needs of the 21st century. In this era,
the threats to NATO members are transnational and far from its
geographic borders. There is strong support among members for
NATO's operation in Afghanistan, and for its training mission
in Iraq. NATO's viability as an effective defense and security
alliance depends on flexible, creative leadership, as well as
the willingness of members to improve capabilities and address
common threats.
If NATO is to continue to be the preeminent security
Alliance and serve the defense interests of its membership, it
must continue to evolve and that evolution must include
enlargement. Potential NATO membership motivates emerging
democracies to make important advances in areas such as the
rule of law and civil society. A closer relationship with NATO
will promote these values and contribute to our mutual
security. Georgia is a young democracy that has made tremendous
progress since the ``Rose Revolution.'' It is situated in a
critical geo-strategic location and his host to a large portion
of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline that carries important
energy resources to the West from Azerbaijan and, in the
future, Kazakhstan. Georgia is resisting pressure from
breakaway republics backed by Moscow. In the past, border
disputes have been identified as reasons a country may not be
invited to join NATO. But in this case, Russia's actions, not
Georgia's, are frustrating Tbilisi's NATO aspirations.
Three years ago, the United States Senate unanimously voted
to invite seven countries to join NATO. Today, Bulgaria,
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia are
making significant contributions to NATO and are among our
closest allies in the global war on terrorism. It is time again
for the United States to take the lead in urging its allies to
bring in new members, and to offer timely admission of Albania,
Croatia, Georgia, Macedonia (FYROM), and Ukraine to NATO.
II. Committee Action
On February 6, 2007, Senator Lugar introduced S. 494, the
NATO Freedom Consolidation Act of 2007. At a business meeting
on March 7, 2007, by a voice vote, the committee ordered the
bill reported favorably.
III. Cost Estimate
Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(a) of the Standing
Rules of the Senate, the following cost estimate has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE
March 9, 2007
S. 494
NATO Freedom Consolidation Act of 2007
AS ORDERED REPORTED BY THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS ON
MARCH 6, 2007
S. 494 would endorse the expansion of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization to include the Republic of Albania, the
Republic of Croatia, Georgia, the Republic of Macedonia, and
Ukraine. The bill also would authorize the appropriation in
2008 of such sums as may be necessary to provide military
assistance to those countries.
Based on information from the Department of State in the
documents that support its appropriation request for 2008, CBO
estimates that about $30 million would be sufficient to meet
the authorized purposes. Based on historical spending patterns,
CBO estimates that outlays would total $12 million in 2008 and
$30 million over the 2008-2012 period, assuming appropriation
of the necessary amounts. Enacting the bill would not affect
direct spending or receipts.
S. 494 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
On March 5, 2007, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R.
987, the NATO Freedom Consolidation Act of 2007, as ordered
reported by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on February
15, 2007. The two bills are similar and the estimated costs for
both bills are the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sam Papenfuss.
This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
IV. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(b) of the Standing
Rules of the Senate, the committee has determined that there is
no regulatory impact as a result of this legislation.
V. Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of Rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee has determined that
there are no changes in existing law made by the bill, as
reported.