WASHINGTON— U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today gave the following opening remarks at a full committee nominations hearing. Nominees included Jason Evans for Under Secretary of State for Management, Thomas Rose for ambassador to Poland, William White for ambassador to Belgium, and Peter Lamelas for ambassador to Argentina.
“Thank you to our witnesses and their families for being with us today. As always, families play a large role when you’re taking on service like you are. I strongly believe a president has the right to pick his team, and I know he has put a great deal of consideration into each of these nominations.
“Mr. White, as you know, Belgium is a core U.S. ally in Europe and plays a critical and unique role in the transatlantic relationship. As the host of NATO headquarters and the European Union, engagement with Belgium is essential to strengthening the transatlantic relationship and protecting our collective security. In the face of rising aggression, Belgium has been a partner in hitting Russia where it hurts by freezing its sovereign assets and using those funds to stop Putin’s war machine. I personally appreciated this, as I was the author of the original bill to freeze assets, and we were struggling until Belgium was on board. Once they got on board, things started to move. I look forward to working with you to strengthen these efforts. As ambassador, you’ll be charged with furthering this very important relationship.
“Mr. Rose, you too will be charged with an important relationship. Poland is one of the United States’ strongest and closest allies in Europe and is one of the top contributors to NATO’s collective defense. Poland has taken steps to address the threat in its backyard when others were reluctant to do so, and we appreciate Polish leadership in Europe and the alliance. U.S. cooperation with Poland will continue to be crucial as we push back on Russia’s aggression. I can tell you, and I think the Ranking Member will agree, the Poles are anxious to work with us. We had the opportunity last week to jointly host a group of parliamentarians from Poland, it was bipartisan, and they were anxious to work with us to do what we need to do. I look forward to hearing how you will advance U.S.-Polish relations and our shared interests.
“Dr. Lamelas, Argentina and the United States maintain robust bilateral relations based on shared interests and western democratic values. President Milei (Mill-Ay) is a key partner in our hemisphere, and I hope that you will take every opportunity to deepen economic and security relations with Argentina. America isn’t its only interested partner; China is increasingly spreading its influence in the Western Hemisphere. We all know that. I hope as ambassador to Argentina that you will work with your counterparts to support practical measures that reduce Chinese technological and financial influence in Argentina and South America more generally.
“Mr. Evans, as Undersecretary for Management, you’ll work with Secretary Rubio and President Trump to facilitate the very important and necessary State Department reorganization. Secretary Rubio has streamlined the bureaucracy and made the Department run more efficiently, and this change couldn’t be more sorely needed. I also fully support the Department’s return to merit hiring and promotions, rather than the woke system under the last administration.
“Over the past several years I have passed bills that focus on making the State Department leaner and more effective. Two of those bills, the Secure Embassy Construction and Counterterrorism Act as well as the Mission in a Box Act, were never fully implemented by the previous administration. I am hoping that you can ensure these bills will get fully implemented.
“Thank you all and your families once more for your willingness to serve. I’ll now turn it over to the ranking member."
These remarks have been lightly edited for clarity. Witness testimony is available on foreign.senate.gov.