Chairman's Press
Menéndez, Rubio Presentan Proyecto de Ley en Apoyo al Aumento de Capital del BID
WASHINGTON - El senador Bob Menéndez (D-N.J.), Miembro de Más Alto Rango del Comité de Relaciones Exteriores del Senado, y el Senador Marco Rubio (R-FL) presentaron hoy un nuevo Proyecto de Ley para autorizar el décimo aumento general de capital para el Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID, por sus siglas en español), la institución financiera líder en el hemisferio. En un momento en que los países de la región sufren el impacto e… Continue Reading
December 10, 2020
Menendez, Rubio Unveil Legislation in Support of Capital Increase for Inter-American Development Bank
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chairman of the SFRC Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, today introduced new legislation authorizing the tenth general capital increase for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the hemisphere's leading international financial institution. At a moment when countries in the region have suffered from the widespread economic impact of the COVID-19 pa… Continue Reading
December 09, 2020
Ranking Member Menendez Speaks Ahead of Votes on Joint Resolutions of Disapproval for Trump Administration’s Proposed Arms Sale to UAE
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, spoke on the Senate Floor ahead of today's votes on his Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to reject the Trump administration's effort to approve a multibillion-dollar package of arms sales to the United Arab Emirates. In light of the Trump administration's decision to rush through the precedent-setting sale of aircraft and other weapons systems without the necessary Congressional review, Menendez… Continue Reading
December 09, 2020
Menendez Delivers Floor Remarks on Joint Resolutions of Disapproval of Trump Administration’s Proposed Arms Sale to UAE
WASHINGTON - Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today delivered remarks on the Senate Floor on his Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to reject the Trump administration's effort to provide the United Arab Emirates with precedent-setting aircraft and myriad other weapons systems. In his statement, Ranking Member Menendez discussed the national security risks inherent in the proposed sale in addition to the sale's adverse implications in terms of… Continue Reading
December 09, 2020
Menendez-Schumer Statement on Negotiations with Trump Administration on Legislation to Restore Sudan's Sovereign Immunity
WASHINGTON - Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) issued the following statement on their ongoing negotiations with the Trump administration over legislation to restore Sudan's immunity, as appropriate, from terror-related lawsuits: "After months of delay, the State Department provided Congress with the key portions of the claims agreement with Sudan on November 6. Since then, our offices, in consultation wit… Continue Reading
December 09, 2020
Menendez-Schumer Statement on Negotiations with Trump Administration on Legislation to Restore Sudan's Sovereign Immunity
WASHINGTON - Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) issued the following statement on their ongoing negotiations with the Trump administration over legislation to restore Sudan's immunity, as appropriate, from terror-related lawsuits: "After months of delay, the State Department provided Congress with the key portions of the claims agreement with Sudan on November 6. Since then, our offices, in consultation w… Continue Reading
December 07, 2020
Menendez Statement on Passing of Former U.S. Senator Paul S. Sarbanes
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today issued the following statement on the passing of former Senator Paul S. Sarbanes: "It is with great sadness that I learn of the passing of former Senator Paul Sarbanes, a devoted public servant whose groundbreaking efforts continue to preserve and defend the wellbeing and interests of the United States today. "I am fortunate enough to have served in Congress alongside Paul and to witne… Continue Reading
December 06, 2020
Ranking Member Menendez Statement in Observance of Finland’s Independence Day
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in observance of Finland's Independence Day, December 6: "I extend my best wishes to the Finnish people as you celebrate your Independence Day. The U.S. and Finland have a strong partnership based on shared values and ideals, as well as robust economic ties. I am especially proud of our history of working together to support democracy and human rights around … Continue Reading
December 04, 2020
Menendez, Durbin Statement Ahead of Maduro Regime’s Sham Elections in Venezuela
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) issued the following statement denouncing the Maduro regime's sham elections scheduled to take place on Sunday, December 6. "For nearly two years, world leaders have stood in solidarity with Interim President Juan Guaidó and Venezuela's last democratically-elected institution, the National Assembly, as they have faced severe political repression and a… Continue Reading
December 04, 2020
Declaraciones de Menéndez y Durbin en Vísperas de Chantaje Electoral del Régimen de Maduro en Venezuela
WASHINGTON - El Miembro de Más Alto Rango del Comité de Relaciones Exteriores del Senado, Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), y el líder demócrata del Senado Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) emitieron las siguientes declaraciones denunciando el chantaje electoral anticipado en las elecciones del régimen de Maduro programadas para el domingo 6 de diciembre: "Durante casi dos años, los líderes mundiales se han solidarizado con el presidente interino Juan Guaidó y la… Continue Reading
December 04, 2020
Menendez Calls on Trump Administration to Pay Attention to El Salvador’s Troubling Trajectory under Bukele
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is calling on the Trump administration to start paying attention to the weakening democratic governance in El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele. Citing reports of the Bukele government's widespread irregularities and mismanagement of COVID-19 funding, the discovery of secret negotiations between the Bukele administration and the MS-13 gang to advance his party's electoral ambitions, … Continue Reading
December 04, 2020
Menendez Calls on Secretary Pompeo to Cancel Indoor Soirées to Avoid Reckless Health Risk to Department Employees and Event Staff
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is calling on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to prioritize the well-being of State Department employees and workers by canceling upcoming indoor parties and other non-essential in-person events, in an effort to reduce further spread of COVID-19. In response to a Washington Post report that the Department has invited 900 people to multiple large-scale gatherings that start next week, Ranki… Continue Reading
December 03, 2020
Senators Introduce Bipartisan Resolution to Strengthen Protections for Venezuelan Women and Children
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced a bipartisan resolution in support of efforts strengthening international protection of and assistance to Venezuelan women and children. The bipartisan resolution comes during the United Nation's 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence. "With this resolution, we stand in solidarity with Venezuelan women and… Continue Reading
December 03, 2020
Menendez, Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Senate Resolution in Support of Thailand’s Pro-Democracy Movement
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) today led a group of seven of their Senate colleagues in introducing a Senate Resolution to underscore the United States' commitment to human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Thailand. The senators' resolution follows recent demonstrations by Thailand's pro-democracy movement, which have been met with violence and repression by the country's government. J… Continue Reading
December 02, 2020
Menendez Opening Remarks at Nominations Committee Hearing on Ambassadors to Ethiopia, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, Malaysia, Timor-Leste
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the following opening statement at this morning's committee hearing on the nominations of Geeta Pasi to be Ambassador to Ethiopia, Cynthia Kierscht to be Ambassador to Mauritania, David Reimer to be Ambassador to Sierra Leone, Brian McFeeters to be Ambassador to Malaysia, and C. Kevin Blackstone to be Ambassador to Timor-Leste. Below are Ranking Member Menendez's remarks as… Continue Reading
December 01, 2020
Ranking Member Menendez Statement in Observance of Romania’s Great Union Day
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in observance of Romania's Great Union Day, December 1: "As Romanian-Americans in New Jersey and Romanians around the world commemorate Great Union Day, I send my best wishes to all those celebrating. The United States and Romania already have a strong relationship, and I am especially grateful to the Romanian people for their commitment to standing with the… Continue Reading
December 01, 2020
Menendez, Portman Call for Funding to Address Humanitarian Disaster in South Caucasus
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was joined today by Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) in urging the Senate Appropriations Committee to explicitly allocate robust funding in the final FY21 appropriations bill to address the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the south Caucasus. In a letter to Senators Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, … Continue Reading
November 28, 2020
Ranking Member Menendez Statement on Holodomor Remembrance Day
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in observance of Holodomor Remembrance Day, November 28: "I join the people of Ukraine and Ukrainian-Americans in New Jersey in remembering the millions who perished during the Holodomor. Nearly 90 years after Stalin deliberately created a famine in Ukraine and sealed the country's borders to block starving Ukrainians from escaping or food aid from entering,… Continue Reading
November 23, 2020
Menendez Leads Bipartisan Call for Saudi Government to Release Wrongfully Detained Women Political Prisoners
WASHINGTON - Today, following the conclusion of the G20 Summit, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led nine of his Senate colleagues in demanding the immediate release of women political prisoners who remain unjustly detained in Saudi Arabia. In a bipartisan letter to Her Royal Highness Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Senators emphasized the heightened risk of c… Continue Reading
November 23, 2020
Menendez Statement on Biden-Harris National Security Cabinet Announcement
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after President-elect Joe Biden announced his intention to nominate Antony Blinken as Secretary of State, Alejandro Mayorkas as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Avril Haines as Director of National Intelligence, Linda Thomas-Greenfield as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations,. Along with those nominations, Jake Sullivan was named as National Sec… Continue Reading
