; Whereas allies have committed to further enhance NATO’s defense and deterrence posture by aligning defense spending increases with NATO’s new defense plans and force structure requirements; Whereas NATO allies have made these additional contributions to collective security despite sharp inflation and record-high energy costs; Whereas European countries have taken in over 4,000,000 Ukrainian refugees as a direct result of the Russian Federation’s unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Union has designated $18,000,000,000 in support for refugees, and European NATO members collectively have additionally allocated $4,600,000,000 to support refugees; Whereas NATO’s defense posture and military capabilities were enhanced with the April 2023 accession of Finland, which exceeds 2 percent of GDP defense spending and possesses one of Europe’s largest and most capable armed forces; and Whereas the ratification of Sweden as the newest member of the NATO alliance would add critical air and maritime capabilities to the collective security of Europe and North America, bring almost the entire Baltic coastline into the alliance, and expand the alliance’s expertise in the Arctic and undersea environments: Now, therefore, be it