A Look Ahead—March 27-31

Washington, D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) announced the following upcoming Committee events: Tuesday, March 28 Hearing: The Budget, Diplomacy, and Development 10 a.m. on Tuesday, March 28 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building Committee on Foreign Affairs Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman Invited Witnesses Include: Stephen D. Krasner, Ph.D. Senior Fellow Hoover Institution Ms. Danielle Pletka Senior Vice President Foreign and Defense Policy Studies American Enterprise Institute The Honorable R. Nicholas Burns Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of Diplomacy and International Relations Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs John F. Kennedy School of Government Harvard University (Former Under Secretary for Political Affairs, U.S. Department of State) Chairman Royce on the hearing: "From fighting ISIS to feeding the starving, diplomacy and foreign assistance plays a critical role in advancing U.S. values and national security.  With no shortage of grave threats, we must ensure our foreign aid is effective, efficient, and adequately funded.  This hearing will be an opportunity to discuss ways to more strategically deploy foreign assistance programs at a time when resources are limited." Tuesday, March 28 Subcommittee Hearing: Venezuela's Tragic Meltdown 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Chairman Invited Witnesses Include: Mr. Steve Hanke Co-Director Institute for Applied Economics, Global Health, and the Study of Business Enterprise The Johns Hopkins University Mr. Russell M. Dallen, Jr. President and Editor-in-Chief Latin American Herald Tribune Hector Schamis, Ph.D. Adjunct Professor Walsh School of Foreign Service Georgetown University Michael McCarthy, Ph.D. Research Fellow Center for Latin American and Latino Studies American University Chairman Duncan on the hearing: "Today, the crisis in Venezuela has regressed on every level. Although once the richest country in the region, Venezuela has suffered severe corruption, economic mismanagement, and the deterioration of democracy first under former President Hugo Chavez and now under President Nicolas Maduro's oppressive tenure. Thousands of people have fled the country in search of food, medicine, and basic goods. Political prisoners are at a record high, and the Maduro regime continues to forcefully silence dissent. There are no separation of powers or independent institutions in the country, and drug trafficking and organized crime are rampant. This hearing continues the Subcommittee's oversight begun last Congress with two previous hearings on Venezuela, and I look forward to getting a clearer picture of the situation in the country and the regional response from our witnesses as well as suggestions for U.S. policy moving forward." Tuesday, March 28 Subcommittee Hearing: East Africa's Quiet Famine 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28 in 2200 Rayburn House Office Building Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), Chairman Invited Witnesses Include: Panel I Mr. Matthew Nims Acting Director Office of Food for Peace Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance U.S. Agency for International Development Panel II Mr. Ken Isaacs Vice President Programs and Government Relations Samaritan's Purse Mr. Michael Bowers Vice President Humanitarian Leadership and Response Mercy Corps Mr. Thabani Maphosa Vice-President for Food Assistance World Vision International Ms. Faustine Wabwire Senior Foreign Assistance Policy Advisor Bread for the World Institute Chairman Smith on the hearing: "The East Africa famine of 2011 gained significant news coverage and a very active international response.  In contrast, the current East Africa famine has gotten much less obvious news attention despite the fact that at least 16 million people in the region face hunger or even starvation.  This hearing is intended to examine the dimensions of the current famine, the reasons why it has become so acute and existing government and civil society efforts to meet the desperate needs." Wednesday, March 29 Markup: H. Res. 54, H. Res. 92, H. Res. 137, H. Res. 145, H.R. 390, H.R. 479, H.R. 672, and H.R. 1644 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, March 29 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building Committee on Foreign Affairs Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman Measures to be Marked Up Include: H. Res. 54, Reaffirming the United States-Argentina partnership and recognizing Argentina's economic reforms; H. Res. 92, Condemning North Korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles, and for other purposes; H. Res. 137, Honoring the life of Shimon Peres; H. Res. 145, Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the fight against corruption in Central America; H.R. 390, Iraq and Syria Genocide Emergency Relief and Accountability Act of 2017; H.R. 479, North Korea State Sponsor of Terrorism Designation Act of 2017; H.R. 672, Combating European Anti-Semitism Act of 2017; and H.R. 1644, Korean Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act. Wednesday, March 29 Subcommittee Hearing: Testing the Limits: Iran's Ballistic Missile Program, Sanctions, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps 2 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman Invited Witnesses Include: Kenneth Katzman, Ph.D. Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs Congressional Research Service Mr. Michael Eisenstadt Kahn Fellow Director of Military and Security Studies Program The Washington Institute for Near East Policy Ms. Elizabeth Rosenberg Senior Fellow and Director Energy, Economics and Security Program Center for a New American Security Chairman Ros-Lehtinen on the hearing: "Iran's illicit behavior has only gotten worse since implementation of the JCPOA, taking U.S. citizens hostage, seizing U.S. Navy vessels, and increasing its support for Assad, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. The most troubling example, however, may be the advancement of its ballistic missile program, a program historically proven to correspond to the pursuit of nuclear weapons, in open defiance of UN Security Council Resolution 2231. This hearing will explore Iran policy options before Members and the administration, including revisiting the JCPOA, reevaluating Resolution 2231, and fully implementing all available sanctions, in order to curb the dual-threat of Iran's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs." Thursday, March 30 Joint Subcommittee Hearing: Consequences and Context for Russia's Violations of the INF Treaty Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Committee on Armed Services Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), Chairman Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), Chairman 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 30 in 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building Invited Witnesses Include: The Honorable Frank Rose (Former Assistant Secretary for Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance, U.S. Department of State) The Honorable Robert Scher (Former Assistant Secretary for Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities, U.S. Department of Defense) Mr. Jon Wolfsthal (Former Senior Director for Arms Control and Nonproliferation, National Security Council) Chairman Rogers on the hearing: "After promising military responses and economic sanctions, the Obama Administration did nothing about Russia's blatant violations of arms control agreements like the INF treaty.  It was thus not a surprise that the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff had to warn that Russia has now deployed its illegal weapons system and that such a deployed system poses a direct threat to U.S. forces and U.S. allies.  The question now turns to what the new Administration can do about this mess it inherited from President Obama?  Mr. Poe and I provided the previous Administration tools to use to deal with Russia's violation; but they chose to appease Russia to prioritize other matters, like the fantasy of cooperation in Syria and the dangerous Iran deal.  The new administration must do better, and I hope this hearing will help to show how it can.  Russia cannot continue to believe it will pay no price for its belligerent and unlawful actions." Chairman Poe on the hearing: "Russia's ongoing violations of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty are a direct threat to U.S. national security. It was bad enough when it appeared that Russia was testing missile systems in violation of the arms control agreement. Now we have indications that Putin actually deployed prohibited cruise missiles at two sites in Russia late last year, crossing a threshold that could have dangerous consequences. Chairman Rogers and I have long called for reviewing U.S. compliance with the INF Treaty in light of consistent Russian violations going back to 2008. The time is ripe to study our contingency plans and make sure that the U.S. is not left unprepared and vulnerable due to its strict compliance with an agreement that Russia does not honor. This hearing will allow members to hear about these serious concerns from former U.S. officials who worked directly on our arms control agreements with Moscow and learn more about potential responses we can take to protect our national security."   ***See www.foreignaffairs.house.gov for updates. ***Coverage note:  All Foreign Affairs Committee proceedings are webcast live at www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/live-video-feed.

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