FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Historic Bipartisan Group of Former Cabinet and Top National Security Leaders – including Baker, Kissinger, and Ridge – Support IMF Quota Reform

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 12, 2014) --- The Bretton Woods Committee released a letter to Senate Majority Leader Reid, House Speaker Boehner, Senate Minority Leader McConnell and House Minority Leader Pelosi signed by the most widely respected national security and economic leaders in modern American history, urging Congress to enact quota reform legislation for the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The letter from 23 former Cabinet officials along with several notable national security and military experts – which includes Secretaries James Baker, Tom Ridge, Henry Kissinger, Condoleezza Rice, Leon Panetta, and General Brent Scowcroft – spans bipartisan leadership from eight consecutive U.S. administrations who expressed their support for strong U.S. leadership in the IMF. A full text of the letter can be found here.

"It is a highly rare and telling sign to see this much top level bipartisan alignment on a foreign policy issue. The cross-section of signatories represents influencers from every Administration since Nixon who agree the IMF is a vital tool that serves U.S. economic and national security interests," said Randy Rodgers, Executive Director of the Bretton Woods Committee. "Working through the IMF, the United States leverages its influence farther to promote objectives of growth, financial stabilization, and sound economic policies in strategically important countries around the globe. This is a force multiplier for U.S. interests," said Rodgers.

"The foresight and leadership of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Ranking Member Bob Corker (R-TN) in including the IMF quota reform legislation in the Ukraine aid bill reinforces the valuable role the IMF plays as a strategic partner to the United States and its allies in assisting countries such as Ukraine in their need for international financial assistance," said Rodgers. The legislation comes at a time when Ukraine is seeking help both from the IMF and the United States to stabilize its economy.

The Bretton Woods Committee leadership would like to thank its membership and partners who assisted in galvanize this bipartisan leadership response to urge congressional enactment of IMF quota reforms. The Committee also distributed a broad-based bipartisan letter on March 10th with signatures from 190 policy experts, business and academic leaders, and former Senate-confirmed appointees who had oversight responsibilities for organizations like the IMF.

The Committee urges Congress to maintain its longstanding, bipartisan support of the International Monetary Fund by quickly enacting the 2010 IMF quota reform legislation together with the Ukraine bilateral financial assistance package.

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The Bretton Woods Committee is the nonpartisan network of prominent global citizens, which works to demonstrate the value of international economic cooperation and to foster strong, effective Bretton Woods institutions as forces for global well-being. For more information contact: Randy Rodgers, Executive Director at 202-331-1616.