Shaheen Highlights Importance of Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda During NATO Summit Event with Secretary Blinken, Ambassador Gupta and Foreign Leaders

**In 2017, Shaheen led the effort to get the bipartisan Women, Peace and Security Act signed into law to bolster the role of women in peace negotiations and conflict resolution around the world**

(Washington, DC) – During this year’s annual NATO Summit, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a senior member of the U.S. Foreign Relations Committee, co-chair of the U.S. Senate NATO Observer Group and author of the bipartisan Women, Peace and Security law, participated in a roundtable with world leaders to discuss the importance of advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and to highlight the essential role women play in preventing and resolving conflict and preserving global peace. Senator Shaheen – who championed the bipartisan Women, Peace and Security Act’s enactment in 2017 – discussed the importance of women’s contributions in peace and conflict settings and how this year’s Summit demonstrates the United States’, NATO’s and our allies’ shared commitment to advancing the WPS agenda. The Senator emphasized that women’s involvement in peace negotiations increase the probability of a peace agreement lasting fifteen years by 35 percent. Photos from the event can be found here.  

“This Summit provides an important opportunity to reaffirm our unwavering commitment to advancing the Women, Peace and Security agenda,” said Shaheen. “Much like the doctrine of collective defense upon which NATO was founded, we are more effective when we work together to ensure women’s participation in all aspects of conflict resolution and peace negotiations. I look forward to continuing our work to fully implement the WPS agenda in the United States and throughout the NATO Alliance.” 

Joining Senator Shaheen at the WPS roundtable was Ambassador-at-Large for the Secretary’s Office of Global Women’s Issues Dr. Geeta Rao Gupta, NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for Women, Peace and Security Irene Fellin, Director of the White House Gender Policy Council Jennifer Klein, Ambassador Bridget Brink and ministers from Ukraine, Belgium, Slovenia and Romania. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken joined Senator Shaheen in giving remarks following the roundtable.  

In 2017, Senator Shaheen’s bipartisan legislation with Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), the Women Peace and Security Act, was signed into law, requiring the U.S. Government to strengthen the meaningful role of women in conflict prevention and peace negotiations. In the fiscal year 2025 Committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Shaheen successfully included a provision to extend the authority of the Women, Peace and Security Act for the Department of Defense. Senator Shaheen’s provision in the FY25 NDAA ensures the Department is able to continue its security cooperation with foreign partners, giving America a strategic advantage over adversaries who devalue and underestimate women’s participation in conflict resolution and political-military affairs. The provision also authorizes the continued implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda within the Department of Defense, which requires women’s participation and gender analysis to be incorporated into security cooperation programs carried out by the Department. 
 

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