Chairman's Press
Menendez, Warner, Brown Request Multiagency Review on Russia Sanctions Implementation
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Mark Warner (D-Va.), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee, today requested three separate Inspector Generals open up probes into the Trump Administration's failure to fully impose legally mandated sanctions under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). In a let… Continue Reading
May 16, 2018
Menendez, Rubio, Nelson, Cruz Introduce Resolution Honoring Ladies in White for 2018 Milton Friedman Prize for Advancing Liberty
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bill Nelson (D-FL), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) today introduced a resolution honoring the Cuban dissident group Las Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White) for receiving the Cato Institute's 2018 Milton Friedman Prize for Advancing Liberty. The dissident group, which routinely faces brutal beatings and imprisonment from the Cuban regime, peacefully gathers and marches in whit… Continue Reading
May 16, 2018
Menendez Opening Statement at Hearing Examining Proposed Authorization for Use of Military Force
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the below statement, as prepared for delivery, at today's hearing "Authorizing the Use of Military Force (AUMF): S.J. Res. 59": "Thank you to both of our witnesses for being here today. I thank Senator Corker for accommodating my and other Members' requests for such a hearing. And I look forward to pressing Secretary of State Pompeo on these issues next week. "And let me … Continue Reading
May 15, 2018
Menendez and Durbin Call for Free and Fair Election in Venezuela
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Foreign Relations Committee and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), today warned the Maduro regime in Venezuela that its upcoming snap election would be considered illegitimate if it failed to meet basic established standards, and called for free and fair election for the Venezuelan people. "The Venezuelan government under President Maduro has taken a series of repressive and undemocratic actions that threatens its o… Continue Reading
May 14, 2018
Menendez on Opening of U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today issued the following statement on the opening of the new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. "The opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem is grounded in the conviction that the United States should recognize the historical Jewish connection to Jerusalem. Over two decades ago, U.S. law established the location of the U.S. Embassy in Israel, a law that I voted for. This move was never a matter of… Continue Reading
May 11, 2018
Menendez Questions President Trump’s Conflicts of Interests in Panama
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today raised concerns about the Trump Organization's effort to convince the Panamanian government to improperly intervene on its behalf in a commercial dispute. In four separate letters to President Donald Trump, the U.S. Embassy in Panama, the Trump Organization, and Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Menendez seeks assurances and clarification on whether the Trump Administration or U.S. e… Continue Reading
May 10, 2018
Menendez on the Release of Americans Imprisoned by North Korea
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement after President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that three American prisoners were released from North Korea during a trip by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. "The release of the three American's being held hostage by Pyongyang is great news and I join their families in this moment of profound relief. I commend Secretary Pompeo, and look forward to discussing… Continue Reading
May 09, 2018
Menendez Calls for Independent Investigation of State Department Decision to Terminate TPS for Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti -- Ignoring Warnings and Jeopardizing National Security
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called on the Government Accounting Office (GAO) to investigate the decision-making process which led the State Department to recommend terminating Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Honduras, El Salvador and Haiti, despite warnings by senior U.S. diplomats and other experts that such an action could jeopardize national security, threaten the safety of TPS beneficiaries and their U.S. ci… Continue Reading
May 08, 2018
Menendez Statement on President Trump’s Decision to Withdraw from the Iran Nuclear Deal
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on President Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). "With this decision President Trump is risking U.S. national security, recklessly upending foundational partnerships with key U.S. allies in Europe and gambling with Israel's security. Today's withdrawal from the JCPOA makes it more likely Iran wil… Continue Reading
May 04, 2018
Menendez, Durbin, Leahy Raise Concerns over Allegations of Ukraine’s Hampered Cooperation with Special Counsel Mueller
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) today sent a letter to Ukraine's Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko expressing concerns over allegations that he impeded cooperation with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation in order to not draw the ire of President Trump. The Senators letter follows a report by the New York Times that quotes Ukrainian government officials assertin… Continue Reading
May 03, 2018
Menendez Statement on World Press Freedom Day
NEWARK - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in honor of World Press Freedom Day. "Freedom of the press is a fundamental human right, foundational pillar of democracy, and an indispensable check on authoritarian overreach. Today, press freedom and the safety of journalists are under threat across the globe- including in the United States. As they fight to advance truth and objectivity, far too many government… Continue Reading
May 01, 2018
Menendez Statement on Church Attack in Central African Republic
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement in response to reports of an attack on a church in Bangui. Media reports indicate over a dozen people dead, including a priest, and at least 100 people wounded. "The alarming outbreak of violence in the Central African Republic including the ruthless attack on a church during mass today is the latest instance of the deteriorating security situation that thre… Continue Reading
May 01, 2018
Menendez Leads Democrats in Urging Secretary Pompeo Improve Refugee Admissions as Key Foreign Policy Priority
WASHINGTON - US Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today led a group of 12 Democratic senators in raising a series of concerns about the Trump Administration's refugee admissions policy, particularly the recent appointment of Andrew Veprek to be a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM). A known refugee and immigration skeptic, Veprek is a close associate of President Trump's senior adviser for po… Continue Reading
April 26, 2018
Menendez on Opposition to Richard Grenell’s Nomination to be Ambassador to Germany
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senator Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the below remarks on the Senate Floor on his vote against the nomination of Richard Grenell to become U.S. Ambassador to Germany. WATCH FULL SPEECH HERE His speech, as prepared for delivery, follows: "M. President, we are considering today the nomination of Richard Grenell to be our Ambassador to Germany. I opposed Mr. Grenell's nomination in committee and I will again o… Continue Reading
April 25, 2018
Menendez Outlines Opposition to Pompeo Nomination in Floor Remarks
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered the following remarks on the Senate Floor on CIA Director Mike Pompeo's nomination to be Secretary of State. CLICK TO WATCH Below are Senator Menendez's full remarks as prepared for delivery: M. President, I rise today to express my opposition to Mike Pompeo serving as this nation's top diplomat. As I said earlier this week in committee, I am genuinely disappointed to be cast… Continue Reading
April 25, 2018
Menendez on the Worsening Humanitarian Crisis in Central African Republic
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today submitted the following statement for the Senate record calling on the Trump Administration to devise a strategy to help bring a sustainable peace to the Central African Republic (CAR) following the escalation of violence, and attacks targeting civilians and humanitarian staff in recent months. The full text of the statement is below: "Mr. President, I rise to call attention to w… Continue Reading
April 25, 2018
Menendez, Kaine, Cardin Lead Democrats in Encouraging Trump Administration to Extend Temporary Protected Status for Honduras
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and 22 Democratic Senators today sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen and Acting Secretary of State John Sullivan urging them to extend Temporary Protected Status for Honduran Nationals, which is set to expire on July 5, 2018. "Ending TPS for Hondurans would force more than 86,031 individuals to go back to a country with … Continue Reading
April 25, 2018
Menendez, Rubio Call for Investigation of Ortega Regime’s Violent Attacks Against Nicaraguan People, Press
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) urged Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General Luis Almagro to work with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to conduct an immediate and comprehensive investigation into the recent violent attacks against civilians and censorship of media outlets in Nicaragua by the Daniel Ortega regime. The full text of the letter is below: Dea… Continue Reading
April 24, 2018
Menendez Statement for the Record on the Fifth Anniversary of the Rana Plaza Tragedy
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, submitted the following statement for the Senate record on April 24, the five-year anniversary of the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The full text of the statement is below: Five years ago today, the Rana Plaza building collapsed in Bangladesh, tragically killing more than 1,100 people and injuring thousands more. Rana Plaza, a bustling multi-story com… Continue Reading
April 23, 2018
Menendez Casts “No” vote on Secretary of State Nominee Mike Pompeo during Senate Foreign Relations Committee Vote
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, spoke at today's Committee business meeting ahead of the vote for Mike Pompeo to be Secretary of State. Below are Senator Menendez's full remarks as prepared for delivery: "Mr. Chairman, let me say a few things about the nominee, but before I do let me just say that Democrats on this committee have worked overwhelmingly with you in moving nominations, in being constructively a part of hear… Continue Reading
