Commending the people of Montenegro on the conduct of the referendum on independence, welcoming United States recognition of the sovereignty and independence of the Republic of Montenegro, and welcoming Montenegrin membership in the United Nations and other international organizations.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself such time as I might consume.

Madam Speaker, Montenegro is a place of great beauty, of rugged mountains and a spectacular coast on the Adriatic Sea. Its people are warm and friendly, and they have a fascinating history and culture. I had the pleasure of visiting Montenegro on many occasions, and I find it a truly delightful place.

The people of Montenegro are fiercely independent. During the five centuries of Turkish dominance of the Balkans, from the late 1300s to the late 1800s, Montenegro was never under Turkish rule, despite repeated attempts of the Sultan to conquer the area.

At the end of World War I, an assembly of Montenegrin representatives voted to unite Montenegro with Serbia. Shortly thereafter, it became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which later became known as Yugoslavia.

When Marshal Tito established the Federation of Yugoslavia in 1945, Montenegro was recognized as one of its constituent republics. In 1991, the Yugoslav Federation began to disintegrate as its republics chose independence.

For over a decade, Montenegro and Serbia continued as the Yugoslav Federation. On May 21 of this year, the government of Montenegro held a free, fair, and open referendum on the question of separating the Republic of Montenegro from Serbia.

Madam Speaker, you will be pleased to note that some 86 percent of the people of Montenegro participated in the referendum, and well over half voted in favor of independence. On June 3, the Montenegrin parliament declared the country's independence.

The United States recognized this status in June. The United Nations General Assembly unanimously accepted Montenegro as the UN's 192nd member at the end of June; and, on August 15, we established diplomatic relations with Montenegro pursuant to an exchange of letters between the Presidents of the United States and Montenegro.

Just 3 weeks ago, Montenegrins voted in their first general election since gaining their independence. A coalition headed by Milo Djukanovic took 40 seats, and it will lead the country's government.

Prime Minister Djukanovic has been the leading political figure in the country over the past decade and a half. The vote that I just referred to is important because the new parliament will draft the constitution defining the newly independent country's goals and its governmental structure.

Madam Speaker, this peaceful separation of Montenegro from Serbia is truly historic. Montenegro has demonstrated its readiness to assume the responsibilities of independence. As UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said, ``In achieving its independence through a nonviolent and democratic process conducted in a fair and open way, Montenegro showed the entire world not only its patience but also its political maturity.''

The government of Serbia also acted responsibly and maturely with regard to the independence of Montenegro. Shortly after the parliament of Montenegro declared its independence, the government of Serbia formally recognized the country, established diplomatic relations with Montenegro, and the President of Serbia, Boris Tadic, was the first head of state to pay an official visit to Montenegro.

President Tadic was our guest here in Washington just this past week, and I want to commend him for his very positive role in this singularly civilized and peaceful evolution in the Balkans.

Throughout the history of the world, Madam Speaker, we have seen much bloodshed and violence over similar situations. The peaceful, amicable separation of Montenegro and Serbia, as the earlier peaceful separation of Slovakia and the Czech Republic, have been exemplary, and all of those countries deserve our recognition and praise.

The European Commission has announced that it will open talks on closer ties between the European Union and Montenegro this month. We look forward to welcoming Montenegro into full membership into the European Union and into other international organizations. We also express the hope that the government of Montenegro and its people will continue to embrace the principles of democracy and particularly will encourage a free and open and democratic society with full respect for the human rights of all of its citizens.

Ethnic Albanians in Montenegro, with whom I have visited at length, have faced many challenges in the past. But I look forward to this newly independent state of Montenegro; and I hope it will remember its tradition as a multiethnic, multicultural and multireligious society based on the rule of law. It has the responsibility of protecting the freedom and human rights of all of its citizens.

Our resolution commends the people of Montenegro on the referendum on independence, welcomes them to the community of nations and to membership in the United Nations and welcomes the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Montenegro.

I strongly support this resolution, Madam Speaker, and I urge all of my colleagues to do as well.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 965) commending the people of Montenegro on the conduct of the referendum on independence, welcoming United States recognition of the sovereignty and independence of the Republic of Montenegro, and welcoming Montenegrin membership in the United Nations and other international organizations.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 965. This resolution was introduced by the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos). H. Res. 965 commends the people of Montenegro for conducting their referendum on independence and welcomes the sovereignty and independence of the Republic of Montenegro.

Madam Speaker, the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia formally ceased to exist in February of 2003, when the Serbian and Montenegro Parliaments and the Yugoslav Federal Parliament adopted a constitutional charter creating the state union of Serbia and Montenegro. This constitutional charter of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro established provisions and procedures for the withdrawal of a member state from the State Union, including that a decision to withdraw from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro shall be made after a referendum has been held.

In accordance with this constitutional charter, the parliament of Montenegro unanimously adopted, in March of 2006, the law on the referendum on the state legal status of the Republic of Montenegro which established the conditions for conducting the referendum on this state independence.

On May 21, 2006, the people of Montenegro conducted the referendum on independence and voted in favor of independence by a margin of 55\1/2\ percent, with over 86 percent of all eligible voters participating in the referendum.

And then on May 23rd, 2006, the U.N. Ambassador to Serbia Montenegro congratulated the people of Montenegro for the peaceful, democratic and transparent manner in which the referendum was carried out and stated that the United States fully supports the Organization For Security and Cooperation in Europe, referred to OSCE, and the assessment of the election which determined that the referendum was conducted in line with the OSCE and the Council of Europe commitments and other international standards for a democratic electoral process.

On June 13, 2006, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced that the United States has formally recognized the Republic of Montenegro as a sovereign and independent state, following the request of its government and consistent with the provisions of the constitutional charter which establishes the state union of Serbia and Montenegro.

It is important to state for the record that the government of the Republic of Serbia has acted responsibly in accordance with the commitments following the referendum of the Montenegrin people.

On June 5, 2006, the Serbian parliament accepted the independence of Montenegro.

On June 15, 2006, the Serbian Government officially recognized the independence of the Republic of Montenegro.

Over the course of the summer, Montenegro has become a member of the United Nations and numerous international organizations and established formal diplomatic relations with countries throughout this world.

Today, it is important that the United States House of Representatives consider this resolution and recognize Montenegro's historic achievement. Madam Speaker, this resolution congratulates the people and government of Montenegro for conducting their free, fair and responsible independence referendum, welcomes Montenegro as an independent and sovereign state, and urges the people and government of Montenegro to continue to embrace the principles of democratic government, human rights and freedom.

I urge the adoption of this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from California (Mr. Lantos) for his leadership in this resolution; and I ask for adoption of the resolution.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, as one of the cosponsors, I am pleased to rise in support of House Resolution 965. The people of Montenegro deserve this commendation for the fair and orderly manner in which they achieved independence. They also deserve commendation for their patience. Many Montenegrin citizens wanted independence much earlier, but they and their political leaders understood that following a process marked by democratic norms and mutual agreement would only add credibility to the result.

A significant number of Montenegrin citizens, I should add, did not see a reason to break its ties in a state union with Serbia and voted against independence in the May referendum. To their credit, they have nevertheless accepted the result. Just last week, Montenegro held new parliamentary elections which were favorably assessed by the OSCE, indicating that the republic remains committed to democratic norms where differences of opinion will be respected.

As noted in the text of the resolution, Serbian authorities and the people of Serbia deserve some credit here as well. While many in Serbia failed to understand why Montenegro felt a need to break with Serbia, there was a willingness to work out differences and, since the May referendum, to respect the results.

Things were not always so easy. As Chairman of the Helsinki Commission, I recall holding hearings on Montenegro. At the time, this republic posed the only genuine and effective internal opposition to the regime of Slobodan Milosevic, and became his threatened next target as a result. Montenegro became a haven for those displaced by the Bosnian and Kosovo conflicts, which was very challenging given its own, small yet ethnically diverse population. For some, it continues in that role. Montenegro needed to assess its own role in the violent disintegration of the former Yugoslavia, and to rebuild good relations with its neighbors. It has done just that. The Commission has maintained a dialogue with Montenegrin political leaders over the years, held hearings on the situation in Montenegro, observed elections there and most recently observed the referendum itself. Whatever concerns have been expressed in this ongoing dialogue, we have had a serious back and forth.

It is my hope that Montenegro, as the 56th participating State in the OSCE, will remain committed to the path it has chosen, and remain engaged with the Helsinki Commission on issues of common concern. Among those issues, few are as important as trafficking in persons. This criminal activity remains a widespread problem throughout southeastern Europe, and Montenegro must endeavor to stop it. I also want to encourage Montenegro to undertake the reforms necessary, especially regarding the judicial system and other aspects of the rule of law, in order to realize its aspirations for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. The people of Montenegro can count on my support.

In closing, Madam Speaker, I think it important to note that Montenegro's independent statehood has implications not only for Montenegro but for the region as a whole. With Montenegro's independent statehood accepted and recognized, another outstanding issue has been resolved, and this time, thankfully, in a peaceful and democratic manner.

Other issues still remain, including of course the question of Kosovo's status. Some would assert that Montenegro's achievement of independent statehood is a precedent that can be easily applied to Kosovo or elsewhere. I would argue, however, that it is not the result of the process Montenegro followed but the process itself, with its commitment to democracy and respect for human rights as well as to finding the most widely acceptable arrangements through compromise, that is the true precedent here that others should follow.