The stakes are high in Congress for the Baltic countries, Ukraine and NATO. Congress has yet to pass its Fiscal Year 2024 Defense Appropriations bill that contains funding for the Baltic Security Initiative (BSI). Congress has also not approved supplemental funding for Ukraine as requested by the Administration. We urge you to complete this Call to Action urging Congress to approve these measures.
The BSI, managed by the Pentagon, has successfully enhanced Baltic deterrent capabilities in the areas of land, sea and air defenses. Deterrence on NATO’s doorstep is less expensive than conflict. Russia must be stopped before it is able to turn its military forces towards the Baltic states or increase the use of hybrid threats including cybersecurity attacks, economic pressure and disinformation.
The Senate Defense Appropriations bill (S. 2587) provides $228 million and the House Defense Appropriations bill (H.R. 4365) provides $225 million for the BSI. Both have been passed out of the respective House and Senate committees but have not been considered on the House floor as part of the regular appropriations process.
Please let Congress know why you support the full funding for the BSI and for the Ukraine Supplemental.
Russia’s brutal use of force in Ukraine has led to the largest land war in Europe since WWII. It is a test of European and US strength and the durability of the NATO Alliance. This security, economic and humanitarian assistance will allow Ukraine to make further advances in protecting their homeland as they degrade the strength of the second strongest military in the world. Ukrainian troops have operated alongside US troops in NATO operations and now they need our help.
The price of NATO’s failure to deter conflict in the future will be much higher in terms of lives and cost if the US and our allies do not take steps now to deter Russian aggression. Not addressing Ukraine only encourages China, Iran and North Korea as well as other malign actors around the world.
We urge you to take a few moments to send pre-populated letters to your representatives in Congress. We encourage you to complete the form and to include a few personal comments if you wish. We also encourage you to talk about these issues with your friends and neighbors especially when there are many myths relating to the purpose and use of Ukraine assistance. Please read “The Top Myths about US Aid to Ukraine” by the Hudson Institute linked here:
https://www.hudson.org/foreign-policy/top-myths-about-us-aid-ukraine-luke-coffey.
These are momentous times. Next year will mark the 75th anniversary of NATO and the 20th year of NATO membership for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. It is time for us all to take a stand and let your representatives know why you support the Baltic countries and Ukraine.
