Rep. Candice Miller (R-Mich.) and a bipartisan group of 53 other House members called on President Obama late last week to ensure that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) invites Macedonia to the group during a planned May summit meeting in Chicago.
"We strongly urge your Administration to make sure that NATO finally offers the Republic of Macedonia its well-deserved formal invitation to join the Alliance during the Chicago Summit," they wrote. "It is our strong belief that an invitation to Macedonia to join the Alliance will benefit U.S. national security interests and NATO's global mission."
The letter noted the consensus in 2008 to have Macedonia join, and that President Obama himself declared in 2009 that, "I look forward to the day when we can welcome Macedonia to the Alliance."
Members argued that Macedonia has shown its commitment to NATO as far back as 1999, when it gave refuse to thousands of Kosovars during NATO's intervention in Kosovo. Macedonia also participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom, sent a small force to Afghanistan and has its troops working alongside U.S. troops in Kabul.
"If Macedonia can protect the tent of NATO, Macedonia should be able to sleep in the tent of NATO," they wrote.
