The Former Soviet Union and U.S. Foreign Assistance in 1992: The Role of Congress Summary

In 1992, Congress played a vital and creative role in what many considered to be the year’s most important foreign policy issue — the question of U.S. assistance to Russia and the other new republics of the former Soviet Union. It approved a series of bills, most prominent of which was the Freedom for Russia and Emerging Eurasian Democracies and Open Markets Support Act of 1992. The Freedom Support Act authorized U.S. foreign assistance to the new states and established the policy framework that laid out the criteria for assistance as well as the types of programs and projects to be assisted. Members of Congress took the lead on this issue by pressuring the Administration to submit a legislative proposal. The House Foreign Affairs Committee even crafted and, on March 24, 1992, introduced its own authorization bill for the region. On April 1, 1992, President Bush announced the Administration’s “comprehensive ” legislation, the Freedom Support Act. As Congress debated the Administration bill, attention focused on several key issues. Should the United States assist the former Soviet Union, and, if so, ho