Sullivan, Senate Ratify Accession of Finland and Sweden Into Nato Alliance

U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), today voted to ratify a resolution of advice and consent for the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). For new members to join the NATO alliance, every existing member must approve a country's accession. For the United States, this responsibility falls under the "advice and consent" duties of the U.S. Senate, the body tasked with approving treaties. The Senate also approved Sen. Sullivan's amendment declaring that all NATO allies should meet their funding obligations.

"As both Presidents Truman and Reagan remarked, members of the NATO alliance are like members of the same house and the same family--the house and the family of democracy," said Sen. Sullivan. "Today, the U.S. Senate will welcome the nations of Sweden and Finland into the NATO family. Like any family, we may not agree on everything, but when it's most important, we will have each other's back. That is the essence of NATO and the core reason for its success."

The Senate unanimously approved Sen. Sullivan's amendment to the resolution of ratification, declaring that all NATO members should spend a minimum of two percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense and 20 percent of their defense budgets on "major equipment, including research and development," by 2024, as outlined in the 2014 Wales Summit Declaration.

"I am a very strong supporter of NATO and the U.S. military, and I want NATO to endure for decades to come," said Sen. Sullivan. "But alliances can't endure if shared commitments and shared burdens are not met…There must be a sense among the citizens of such countries that all are pulling their weight for the collective defense of the alliance, for the collective defense of each other. I thank my colleagues for supporting my amendment, sending a clear message from the Senate about America's expectation that each NATO member fulfill its commitments."

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