U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. said she found broad support for giving continued aid to Ukraine and strengthening the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) during a trip to four countries last week.
Shahen joined the Munich Security Conference and led a bipartisan visit with Sen. Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, to Hungary before visiting Moldova and Turkey with U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut.
“The past week of meetings provided a unique opportunity to discuss shared security challenges with our partners and allies. One thing that was clear to almost everyone we spoke with: we must continue working together in support of brave Ukrainians in their fight for freedom,” Shaheen said in a statement.
“Our meetings were productive — everywhere we traveled, we reaffirmed our commitment to strengthening NATO and pushing back against (Russian leader Vladimir) Putin’s malign influence.”
Shaheen and Tillis co-chair the Senate NATO Observer Group.
First U.S. delegation meeting in Turkey since 2019
While at the Munich conference, Shaheen met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, Serbia President Aleksandar Vucic, Belarusian pro-democracy leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, U.S. European Command (EUCOM) Commander Gen. Christopher Cavoli, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and others.
In Hungary, the senators requested to meet with Hungarian government officials — a customary practice when visiting allied nations — but the meetings were denied, Shaheen said.
The day after that Shaheen-led visit, Hungary announced its intention to ratify Sweden as the next member of NATO, which was one of the senators’ primary reasons for making the trip.
Shaheen and Tillis have since introduced a resolution on the NATO issue as well as Hungary’s democratic backsliding, Shaheen said.
In Turkey, Shaheen and Murphy met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which was the first time President Erdogan met with a U.S. congressional delegation in that country in five years.
Shaheen said during the visit the senators expressed appreciation for Erdogan’s willingness to talk with Putin about permitting unfettered, Ukrainian grain exports through the Black Sea in the future.
Putin has tentative plans to visit Turkey this spring.
A Ukrainian grain agreement collapsed at the onset of Russia’s invasion of that country.
Shaheen also chairs the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation and is a senior member on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
