23 April 1998
(Floor debate on issue about to begin in earnest) (880) By Ralph Dannheisser USIA Congressional Correspondent Washington -- A politically diverse coalition of senators opposed to NATO enlargement sought to rally their forces April 23, as the full Senate moved toward final floor debate on the enlargement proposal strongly backed by the Clinton administration. Nine senators spanning the spectrum from John Ashcroft of Missouri, perhaps the chamber's most conservative Republican, to Paul Wellstone of Minnesota, considered its most liberal Democrat, held a press briefing to outline their admittedly minority viewpoint. Their arguments ranged from the prospect that adding to NATO's membership could strengthen the hand of ultranationalist hardliners in Russia, to the concern that there could be a potentially huge cost to the U.S. taxpayer resulting from the enlargement plan. While none of the group directly predicted victory for their effort to derail the treaty amendment sought by the administration -- it would take 34 votes in the 100-member body to block passage -- several said their side is gaining strength as the vote approaches and the issues involved become clearer. The administration plan, supported by leaders of both parties -- including Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms of North Carolina and Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, the panel's senior Democrat -- is to add Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic to the Alliance's ranks, bringing total membership to 19 nations. Floor debate on the enlargement plan has been proceeding in between other Senate business in recent days, but concentrated consideration was expected to start as soon as the afternoon of April 23. Opponents of the enlargement proposal as it stands are expected to propose several amendments, with a final vote under the Senate's Constitutional power to "advise and consent" on treaties possible by sometime the following week. New Hampshire Republican Robert Smith, who is seeking to coordinate opposition along with Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin, claimed he already has seen an increase in anti-NATO enlargement sentiment among his colleagues, as opponents have used a delay in floor consideration to push their position. Smith said that NATO enlargement -- with the possibility of further additions to the Alliance membership in sight -- "will alienate Russia and encourage them to look eastward" for allies, and it "will frustrate the efforts of Russian democrats to bring Russia into the West." The proposal has already "put Russian ratification of START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) II in jeopardy," he contended. Harkin said his own key area of concern is the potential costs of enlargement. "We shouldn't sign the American taxpayer's name to a blank check," the senator declared. He said the administration's estimate of total U.S. costs of $400 million cannot be correct, inasmuch as "we have already obligated over $1 billion ($1,000 million)" to the effort. The administration figure "does not include a host of loans, grants and giveaway programs" for Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic, Harkin observed, nor does it include U.S. contributions "that enable the new nations to upgrade and modernize their aircraft, tanks and howitzers." "The administration cost estimates should have a big warning label: 'Weapons Not Included,'" Harkin said. But Harkin said the financial cost is not all that troubles him. "Will the progress we've made in nuclear and conventional weapons disarmament with Russia be halted or even reversed? Will expanding NATO exacerbate tensions in Eastern Europe? Will NATO expansion strengthen those in Russia who oppose democratic and market reforms?" he asked. Republican John Warner of Virginia, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he is troubled that there is "no strategic concept...as to what a new NATO, in years to come, will do." "We are about...to fracture an alliance which has...served the whole world with near perfection for more than 50 years" without having such a concept in place, he said. Warner said that while opposition to the treaty amendment has been "a long and lonely journey," he now sees signs of "a grass roots concern all across America." Wellstone termed the proposed enlargement of NATO membership "a profound mistake" that will "lead to a redivision of Europe," albeit along a line that is further to the East than previously. He quoted career diplomat George F. Kennan as saying that expanding NATO would be the most fateful error in the foreign affairs field in the post-World War II world. Senator Kent Conrad, a North Dakota Democrat, cited conversations with Russian leaders in which he was told that, while NATO claims benign intentions in advancing the proposed enlargement, "We look at capabilities, not intentions." And Republican James Jeffords of Vermont spoke of concerns that further increases in NATO membership would put in place "an iron belt around Russia," giving Moscow no choice but to forge an alliance with China to the East. Asked directly whether his forces have a reasonable chance of blocking the treaty amendment, Smith said he had not "counted heads." But while he has "no idea whether it (the number of opponents) will get to 34...it is a growing number." Harkin estimated that, at this point, there are at least 20 senators who question the wisdom of the NATO enlargement measure.