Senate acts on foreign assistance bill (07/11/99)

Senate acts on foreign assistance bill

by Michael Sawkiw Jr.
Ukrainian National Information Service

WASHINGTON - The Senate Subcommittee on Foreign Operations of the Senate Committee on Appropriations met on June 17, to mark-up the foreign aid bill for Fiscal Year 2000 (the government's fiscal year ends on September 30th of each year). Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), chairman of the foreign operations subcommittee, presented the entire appropriations committee with an overview of the foreign aid bill. Commenting on the allocations accorded to him by the budget committee, Sen. McConnell stated that funds for the bill are not at their highest levels. The Senate's version of spending for foreign operations of the U.S. government amounts to $12.6 billion.

During the mark-up process, Sen. McConnell stressed "focus on the Balkans" in this year's bill. The end of the war in Kosovo has shown a dramatic need for reconstruction in Kosovo; thus, spending for the southeast region Europe has increased. In his remarks, Chairman McConnell specified that not less than $150 million would be appropriated for Kosovo to fund Kosovar security forces, rebuild of infrastructure, etc. The chairman of the subcommittee clearly emphasized that as long as President Slobodan Milosevic is in power, Serbia is considered to be a "terrorist state" and will not be afforded U.S. foreign assistance. Southeast European countries that are slated to to receive assistance include Albania, Romania, Macedonian, Bulgaria, Montenegro (a province of Yugoslavia) and Bosnia-Herzogovina.

Assistance for the new independent states (NIS) of the former Soviet Union, under the Freedom Support Act (FSA), provides $780 million for various programs. As stated in the bill, "Of the funds appropriated under this heading [FSA], not less than $210 million shall be made available for assistance to Ukraine." Specific funds are designated for programs related to nuclear safety, law enforcement reforms, and the development of business incubator centers.

As in the previous two years, however, the Ukrainian earmark does include a certification clause: 120 days after the passage of the entire bill (both Senate and House versions), the Secretary of State must certify to the Joint Committees on Appropriations that Ukraine has "undertaken significant economic reforms additional to those achieved in fiscal year 1999," or 50 percent of Ukraine's funding will be terminated. This year's bill is different from previous year's in that the resolution of American business disputes has not been included in the Senate's final version. [In past years, the Ukrainian- American community, as well as the government of Ukraine, were vigorously opposed to certification language that included the resolution of U.S. business claims in Ukraine.]

Armenia and Georgia also received earmarked assistance, $90 million and $95 million respectfully, to continue their economic reform agendas. Assistance to Russia is conditional upon Russia's cooperation with NATO's K-FOR forces in Kosovo, and its compliance with the condition that there be no separate sector of Russian activity in that region.

Following the presentation of the bill to the members of the appropriations committee, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), ranking member on the Foreign Operations Subcommittee, "commended the chairman [Sen. McConnell] for his leadership" in developing a bipartisan bill that addresses the most important issues now challenging America. Several weeks later, the bill was brought to the Senate floor for a vote. On June 30, the Senate overwhelming supported the bill a vote of 97-2.

The next step remains is in the House of Representatives. The Foreign Operations Subcommittee in the House will likely meet in July to mark-up its version of the foreign aid bill. Like the Senate, the House of Representatives was also given a very low allocation level from its Budget Committee for the foreign operations bill. Following passage of the House version of the foreign aid bill, any remaining discrepancies between the two versions of the bill will be addressed in conference.

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