WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) applauded the men and women of the Maine Army National Guard for their work in preparing the nation of Montenegro to enter the National Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

            “First, we all on this side of the dais, I assert, often are prone to bragging about our own states. But, in this case, I cannot fail to mention that a lot of the preparation for Montenegro’s ascension to NATO on the military and security side came through the partnership with the Maine National Guard,” Senator King said. “We have been working with Montenegro since 2006, and I am extremely proud of the work that our men and women have done in order to facilitate a very important geopolitical development. So I wanted to preface my remarks with a real recognition of the work that was done by those good people from Maine.”

For the past decade, the Maine National Guard has partnered with Montenegro to advise and assist the young nation following its December 2006 declaration of independence as it transformed its military and improved its disaster preparedness and response. With the support of Senator King, the U.S. Senate on March 28^th voted overwhelmingly in favor the resolution of ratification approving Montenegro’s accession to NATO. Following the Senate’s ratification of the treaty, Senator King also praised the Maine National Guard in a statement he submitted to the Congressional Record.

Today’s hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee, of which Senator King is a member, focused on the attempted coup last October in Montenegro and Russia’s malign influence in Europe. Montenegrin officials later charged that Russia was involved in the attempt to overthrow the government. The witnesses today included: Nebojša Kalu?erovi?, Ambassador of Montenegro to the United States; Janusz Bugajski, Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis; Lisa Sawyer Samp, Senior Fellow with the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; and Damon Wilson, the Executive Vice President at The Atlantic Council.

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