The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign aid programs; arms sales and training for national allies; and holding confirmation hearings for high-level positions in the Department of State. Its sister committee in the House of Representatives is the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Along with the Finance and Judiciary committees, the Foreign Relations Committee is among the oldest in the Senate, dating to the initial creation of committees in 1816. It has played a leading role in several important treaties and foreign policy initiatives throughout U.S. history, including the Alaska Purchase, the establishment of the United Nations, and the passage of the Marshall Plan.

From 2021 to 2023, the Foreign Relations Committee was chaired by Democratic senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, until he stepped down as chair after facing federal corruption charges.

Role

In 1943, a confidential analysis of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by British scholar Isaiah Berlin for the Foreign Office stated:

History

Between 1887 and 1907, Alabama Democrat John Tyler Morgan played a leading role on the committee. Morgan called for a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through Nicaragua, enlarging the merchant marine and the Navy, and acquiring Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Cuba. He expected Latin American and Asian markets would become a new export market for Alabama's cotton, coal, iron, and timber. The canal would make trade with the Pacific much more feasible, and an enlarged military would protect that new trade. By 1905, most of his dreams had become reality, with the canal passing through Panama instead of Nicaragua.

[[File:Refusing to give the lady a seat - Rollin Kirby Trim.jpg|thumb|Refusing to give the lady [Peace Treaty of Versailles] a seat—by Senators Borah, Lodge and Johnson, 1919]]

During World War II, the committee took the lead in rejecting traditional isolationism and designing a new internationalist foreign policy based on the assumption that the United Nations would be a much more effective force than the old discredited League of Nations. Of special concern was the insistence that Congress play a central role in postwar foreign policy, as opposed to its ignorance of the main decisions made during the war. Republican senator Arthur Vandenberg played the central role.

thumb|Committee chair Senator [[J. William Fulbright (left) with Senator Wayne Morse during a hearing on the Vietnam War in 1966]]

In 1966, as tensions over the Vietnam War escalated, the committee set up hearings on possible relations with Communist China. Witnesses, especially academic specialists on East Asia, suggested to the American public that it was time to adopt a new policy of containment without isolation. The hearings Indicated that American public opinion toward China had moved away from hostility and toward cooperation. The hearings had a long-term impact when Richard Nixon became president, discarded containment, and began a policy of détente with China. The problem remained of how to deal simultaneously with the Chinese government on Taiwan after formal recognition was accorded to the Beijing government. The committee drafted the Taiwan Relations Act (US, 1979) which enabled the United States both to maintain friendly relations with Taiwan and to develop fresh relations with China.

In response to conservative criticism that the state department lacked hardliners, President Ronald Reagan in 1981 nominated Ernest W. Lefever as Assistant Secretary of State. Lefever performed poorly at his confirmation hearings and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations rejected his nomination by vote of 4–13, prompting Lefever to withdraw his name. Elliot Abrams filled the position.

Republican senator Jesse Helms, a staunch conservative, was committee chair in the late 1990s. He pushed for reform of the UN by blocking payment of U.S. membership dues.

Bertie Bowman served as a staffer on the FRC from 1966 to 1990 and as the hearing coordinator from 2000 to 2021.

Members, 119th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Jim Risch, Idaho, Chair
  • Pete Ricketts, Nebraska
  • Dave McCormick, Pennsylvania
  • Steve Daines, Montana
  • Bill Hagerty, Tennessee
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Mike Lee, Utah
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky
  • Ted Cruz, Texas
  • Rick Scott, Florida
  • John Curtis, Utah
  • John Cornyn, Texas

| valign=top |

  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire, Ranking Member
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon
  • Cory Booker, New Jersey
  • Brian Schatz, Hawaii
  • Chris Van Hollen, Maryland
  • Tammy Duckworth, Illinois
  • Jacky Rosen, Nevada

|}

Subcommittees

{|class="wikitable"

!Subcommittees

!Chair

!Ranking Member

{|class="wikitable sortable"

|-

!Name

!Party

!State

!Start

!End

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|VA

|1816

|1818

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NC

|1818

|1819

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|LA

|1819

|1820

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|VA

|1820

|1821

|-

|

|Federalist

|NY

|1821

|1822

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|VA

|1822

|1825

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NC

|1825

|1826

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NY

|1826

|1827

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NC

|1827

|1828

|-

|

|Democratic

|VA

|1828

|1832

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1832

|1833

|-

|

|Democratic

|PA

|1833

|1834

|-

|

|Whig

|KY

|1834

|1836

|-

|

|Democratic

|PA

|1836

|1841

|-

|

|Whig

|VA

|1841

|1842

|-

|

|Whig

|VA

|1842

|1845

|-

|

|Democratic

|OH

|1845

|1846

|-

|

|Democratic

|AR

|1846

|1848

|-

|

|Democratic

|IN

|1848

|1849

|-

|

|Democratic

|MO

|colspan=2 align=center |1849

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1849

|1850

|-

|

|Democratic

|MS

|1850

|1851

|-

|

|Democratic

|VA

|1851

|1861

|-

|

|Republican

|MA

|1861

|1871

|-

|

|Republican

|PA

|1871

|1877

|-

|

|Republican

|ME

|1877

|1879

|-

|

|Democratic

|CT

|1879

|1881

|-

|

|Republican

|RI

|colspan=2 align=center |1881

|-

|

|Republican

|VT

|colspan=2 align=center |1881

|-

|

|Republican

|MN

|1881

|1883

|-

|

|Republican

|CA

|1883

|1886

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1886

|1893

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1893

|1895

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1895

|1897

|-

|<br />Acting

|Republican

|ME

|colspan=2 align=center |1897

|-

|

|Republican

|MN

|1897

|1900

|-

|

|Republican

|IL

|1901

|1911

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1913

|1914

|-

|

|Democratic

|MO

|1914

|1918

|-

|

|Democratic

|NE

|1918

|1919

|-

|

|Republican

|MA

|1919

|1924

|-

|

|Republican

|ID

|1924

|1933

|-

|

|Democratic

|NV

|1933

|1940

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1940

|1941

|-

|

|Democratic

|TX

|1941

|1947

|-

|

|Republican

|MI

|1947

|1949

|-

|

|Democratic

|TX

|1949

|1953

|-

|

|Republican

|WI

|1953

|1955

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1955

|1957

|-

|

|Democratic

|RI

|1957

|1959

|-

|

|Democratic

|AR

|1959

|1975

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1975

|1979

|-

|

|Democratic

|ID

|1979

|1981

|-

|

|Republican

|IL

|1981

|1985

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|1985

|1987

|-

|

|Democratic

|RI

|1987

|1995

|-

|

|Republican

|NC

|1995

|2001

|-

|

|Democratic

|DE

|colspan=2 align=center |2001

|-

|

|Republican

|NC

|colspan=2 align=center |2001

|-

|

|Democratic

|DE

|2001

|2003

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|2003

|2007

|-

|

|Democratic

|DE

|2007

|2009

|-

|

|Democratic

|MA

|2009

|2013

|-

|

|Democratic

|NJ

|2013

|2015

|-

|

|Republican

|TN

|2015

|2019

|-

|

|Republican

|ID

|2019

|2021

|-

|

|Democratic

|NJ

|2021

|2023

|-

|

|Democratic

|MD

|2023

|2025

|-

|

|Republican

|ID

|2025

|present

|}

Ranking members

{|class="wikitable sortable"

|-

!Name

!Party

!State

!Start

!End

|-

|

|Federalist

|NY

|1816

|1817

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|GA

|1817

|1818

|-

|

|Federalist

|NY

|1818

|1819

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|VA

|1819

|1820

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|LA

|1820

|1822

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NC

|1822

|1823

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|TN

|1823

|1824

|-

|

|Democratic-Republican

|NC

|1824

|1825

|-

|

|Federalist

|MA

|1825

|1826

|-

|rowspan=2 |

| |Democratic-Republican<br />(1826–1827)

|rowspan=2 |NH

|rowspan=2 |1826

|rowspan=2 |1828

|-

|National Republican<br />(1827–1828)

|-

|

|Jacksonian

|GA

|1828

|1829

|-

|

|National Republican

|NH

|1829

|1831

|-

|

|Jacksonian

|AL

|1831

|1832

|-

|

|Jacksonian

|NC

|1832

|1833

|-

|

|Jacksonian

|GA

|1833

|1834

|-

|

|National Republican

|ME

|1834

|1835

|-

|

|National Republican

|NC

|1835

|1836

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1834

|1838

|-

|

|Whig

|KY

|1838

|1839

|-

|

|Democratic

|NC

|1839

|1840

|-

|

|Democratic

|SC

|1840

|1841

|-

|

|Democratic

|PA

|1841

|1845

|-

|

|Democratic

|NH

|1845

|1847

|-

|

|Democratic

|IN

|1847

|1848

|-

|

|Whig

|NC

|1848

|1849

|-

|

|Whig

|MA

|colspan=2 align=center |1849

|-

|

|Whig

|NC

|1849

|1850

|-

|

|Democratic

|IL

|1850

|1851

|-

|

|Democratic

|WI

|colspan=2 align=center |1851

|-

|

|Whig

|NC

|1851

|1853

|-

|

|Whig

|DE

|1853

|1855

|-

|

|Democratic

|LA

|1855

|1856

|-

|

|Democratic

|CA

|1856

|1857

|-

|

|Democratic

|MO

|1857

|1861

|-

|

|Republican

|NY

|colspan=2 align=center |1861

|-

|

|Republican

|PA

|colspan=2 align=center |1861

|-

|

|Democratic

|MO

|1861

|1862

|-

|

|Unionist

|KY

|colspan=2 align=center |1862

|-

|

|Democratic

|MO

|1862

|1863

|-

|

|Democratic

|MD

|1863

|1864

|-

|

|Republican

|NY

|1864

|1865

|-

|

|Republican

|VT

|colspan=2 align=center |1865

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1865

|1866

|-

|

|Union Democratic

|TN

|1866

|1867

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|1867

|1868

|-

|

|Republican

|NH

|1868

|1869

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|1869

|1871

|-

|

|Republican

|NH

|1871

|1873

|-

|

|Republican

|NJ

|1873

|1875

|-

|

|Republican

|NY

|1875

|1877

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1877

|1879

|-

|

|Republican

|ME

|1879

|1881

|-

|

|Republican

|ME

|1881

|1883

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1883

|1885

|-

|

|Republican

|ME

|1885

|1887

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1887

|1893

|-

|

|Democratic

|VA

|1893

|1895

|-

|

|Republican

|MA

|1895

|1897

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|colspan=2 align=center |1897

|-

|

|Democratic

|IN

|1897

|1899

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1899

|1901

|-

|

|Democratic

|AL

|1901

|1903

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|1903

|1905

|-

|

|Republican

|WI

|1905

|1907

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1907

|1909

|-

|

|Republican

|MT

|1909

|1911

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1911

|1913

|-

|

|Democratic

|CA

|1913

|1915

|-

|

|Republican

|MA

|1915

|1917

|-

|

|Democratic

|TN

|1917

|1919

|-

|

|Republican

|CA

|1919

|1921

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|1921

|1923

|-

|

|Republican

|NY

|1923

|1925

|-

|

|Democratic

|CA

|1923

|1929

|-

|

|Republican

|OH

|1929

|1931

|-

|

|Democratic

|CA

|1931

|1933

|-

|

|Republican

|ID

|1933

|1941

|-

|

|Republican

|CA

|1941

|1945

|-

|

|Republican

|KS

|1945

|1947

|-

|

|Democratic

|TX

|1947

|1949

|-

|

|Republican

|MI

|1949

|1951

|-

|

|Republican

|WI

|1951

|1953

|-

|

|Democratic

|GA

|1953

|1955

|-

|

|Republican

|WI

|1955

|1963

|-

|

|Republican

|IA

|1963

|1969

|-

|

|Republican

|SD

|1969

|1972

|-

|

|Republican

|VT

|1972

|1975

|-

|

|Republican

|NJ

|1975

|1979

|-

|

|Republican

|NY

|1979

|1981

|-

|

|Democratic

|RI

|1981

|1987

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|colspan=2 align=center |1987

|-

|

|Republican

|NC

|1987

|1995

|-

|

|Democratic

|DE

|1997

|2001

|-

|

|Republican

|NC

|2001

|2003

|-

|

|Democratic

|DE

|2003

|2007

|-

|

|Republican

|IN

|2007

|2013

|-

|

|Republican

|TN

|2013

|2015

|-

|

|Democratic

|NJ

|colspan=2 align=center |2015

|-

|

|Democratic

|MD

|2015

|2018

|-

|

|Democratic

|NJ

|2018

|2021

|-

|

|Republican

|ID

|2021

|2025

|-

|

|Democratic

|NH

|2025

|present

|}

Historical committee rosters

118th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Ben Cardin, Maryland, Chair (from September 25, 2023)
  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey, (Chair until September 22, 2023, member until August 20, 2024)
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon
  • Cory Booker, New Jersey
  • Brian Schatz, Hawaii
  • Chris Van Hollen, Maryland
  • Tammy Duckworth, Illinois
  • George Helmy, New Jersey (September 10, 2024–December 8, 2024)
  • Andy Kim, New Jersey (from December 10, 2024)

| valign=top |

  • Jim Risch, Idaho, Ranking Member
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Mitt Romney, Utah
  • Pete Ricketts, Nebraska
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky
  • Todd Young, Indiana
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Ted Cruz, Texas
  • Bill Hagerty, Tennessee
  • Tim Scott, South Carolina

|}

;Subcommittees

{|class="wikitable"

!Subcommittees

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|Africa and Global Health Policy

|Cory Booker (D-NJ)

|Tim Scott (R-SC)

|-

|East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy

|Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

|Mitt Romney (R-UT)

|-

|Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

|Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

|Pete Ricketts (R-NE)

|-

|Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy

|Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)

|John Barrasso (R-WY)

|-

|Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism

|Chris Murphy (D-CT)

|Todd Young (R-IN)

|-

|State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development

|Ben Cardin (D-MD)

|Bill Hagerty (R-TN)

|-

|Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues

|Tim Kaine (D-VA)

|Marco Rubio (R-FL)

|}

117th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Chair
  • Ben Cardin, Maryland
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Ed Markey, Massachusetts
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon
  • Cory Booker, New Jersey
  • Brian Schatz, Hawaii
  • Chris Van Hollen, Maryland

| valign=top |

  • Jim Risch, Idaho, Ranking Member
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Ron Johnson, Wisconsin
  • Mitt Romney, Utah
  • Rob Portman, Ohio
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky
  • Todd Young, Indiana
  • Ted Cruz, Texas
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Mike Rounds, South Dakota
  • Bill Hagerty, Tennessee

|}

;Subcommittees

{|class="wikitable"

!Subcommittees

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|Africa and Global Health Policy

|Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

|Mike Rounds (R-SD)

|-

|East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy

|Ed Markey (D-MA)

|Mitt Romney (R-UT)

|-

|Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

|Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

|Ron Johnson (R-WI)

|-

|Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy

|Chris Coons (D-DE)

|Rob Portman (R-OH)

|-

|Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism

|Chris Murphy (D-CT)

|Todd Young (R-IN)

|-

|State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development

|Ben Cardin (D-MD)

|Bill Hagerty (R-TN)

|-

|Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues

|Tim Kaine (D-VA)

|Marco Rubio (R-FL)

|}

116th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Jim Risch, Idaho, Chair
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Ron Johnson, Wisconsin
  • Cory Gardner, Colorado
  • Todd Young, Indiana
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Rob Portman, Ohio
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky
  • Lindsey Graham, South Carolina
  • Mitt Romney, Utah
  • Ted Cruz, Texas
  • David Perdue, Georgia

| valign=top |

  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Ranking Member
  • Ben Cardin, Maryland
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Tom Udall, New Mexico
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Ed Markey, Massachusetts
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon
  • Cory Booker, New Jersey

|}

{|class="wikitable"

!Subcommittees

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|Africa and Global Health Policy

|Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

|Tim Kaine (D-VA)

|-

|East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy

|Cory Gardner (R-CO)

|Ed Markey (D-MA)

|-

|Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

|Ron Johnson (R-WI)

|Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

|-

|Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism

|Mitt Romney (R-UT)

|Chris Murphy (D-CT)

|-

|Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy

|Todd Young (R-IN)

|Jeff Merkley (D-OR)

|-

|State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development

|John Barrasso (R-WY)

|Cory Booker (D-NJ)

|-

|Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues

|Marco Rubio (R-FL)

|Ben Cardin (D-MD)

|}

115th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Bob Corker, Tennessee, Chair
  • Jim Risch, Idaho
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Ron Johnson, Wisconsin
  • Jeff Flake, Arizona
  • Cory Gardner, Colorado
  • Todd Young, Indiana
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Johnny Isakson, Georgia
  • Rob Portman, Ohio
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky

| valign=top |

  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Ranking Member
  • Ben Cardin, Maryland
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Tom Udall, New Mexico
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Ed Markey, Massachusetts
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon
  • Cory Booker, New Jersey

|}

{|class="wikitable"

!Subcommittees

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism

|Jim Risch (R-ID)

|Tim Kaine (D-VA)

|-

|Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues

|Marco Rubio (R-FL)

|Ben Cardin (D-MD) <small>since February 6, 2018</small><br />Bob Menendez (D-NJ) <small>until February 6, 2018</small>

|-

|Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

|Ron Johnson (R-WI)

|Chris Murphy (D-CT)

|-

|Africa and Global Health Policy

|Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

|Cory Booker (D-NJ)

|-

|East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy

|Cory Gardner (R-CO)

|Ed Markey (D-MA)

|-

|Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy

|Todd Young (R-IN)

|Jeff Merkley (D-OR)

|-

|State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development

|Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

|Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

|}

114th Congress

{|class=wikitable

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • Bob Corker, Tennessee Chair
  • Jim Risch, Idaho
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Ron Johnson, Wisconsin
  • Jeff Flake, Arizona
  • Cory Gardner, Colorado
  • David Perdue, Georgia
  • Johnny Isakson, Georgia
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky
  • Rob Portman, Ohio
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming

| valign=top |

  • Ben Cardin, Maryland, Ranking Member
  • Barbara Boxer, California
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Tom Udall, New Mexico
  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Ed Markey, Massachusetts
  • Jeff Merkley, Oregon

|}

Sources: –297, 661–662

{|class=wikitable

|-

!style="width:50%;" |Subcommittee

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism

|Jim Risch (R-Idaho)

|Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

|-

|Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues

|Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

|Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)

|-

|Europe and Regional Security Cooperation

|Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.)

|Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)

|-

|Africa and Global Health Policy

|Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.)

|Ed Markey (D-Mass.)

|-

|State Department and USAID Management, International Operations and Bilateral International Development

|Rand Paul (R-Ky.)

|Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)

|-

|East Asia, The Pacific and International Cybersecurity Policy

|Cory Gardner (R-Colo.)

|Ben Cardin (D-Md.)

|-

|International Development, Multilateral Institutions and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy

|John Barrasso (R-Wyo.)

|Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

|}

113th Congress

{|class=wikitable

|-

!Majority

!Minority

|-

| valign=top |

  • John Kerry, Massachusetts, Chair, until February 1, 2013
  • Bob Menendez, New Jersey Chair, from February 1, 2013
  • Barbara Boxer, California
  • Ben Cardin, Maryland
  • Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
  • Chris Coons, Delaware
  • Bob Casey, Pennsylvania, until 2013
  • Dick Durbin, Illinois
  • Tom Udall, New Mexico
  • Chris Murphy, Connecticut
  • Tim Kaine, Virginia
  • Ed Markey, Massachusetts, from 2013

| valign=top |

  • Bob Corker, Tennessee Ranking Member
  • Jim Risch, Idaho
  • Marco Rubio, Florida
  • Ron Johnson, Wisconsin
  • Jeff Flake, Arizona
  • John McCain, Arizona
  • John Barrasso, Wyoming
  • Rand Paul, Kentucky

|}

Sources: –297, 661–662

thumb|Officials from the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee inspecting burnt down printing press of [[Uthayan newspaper in Jaffna on December 7, 2013, while E. Saravanapavan, the managing director of the newspaper explaining something to him]]

{|class=wikitable

|-

!style="width:50%;" |Subcommittee

!Chair

!Ranking Member

|-

|International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women's Issues

|Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

|Rand Paul (R-KY)

|-

|East Asian and Pacific Affairs

|Ben Cardin (D-MD)

|Marco Rubio (R-FL)

|-

|African Affairs

|Chris Coons (D-DE)

|Jeff Flake (R-AZ)

|-

|Western Hemisphere and Global Narcotics Affairs

|Tom Udall (D-NM)

|John McCain (R-AZ)

|-

|European Affairs

|Chris Murphy (D-CT)

|Ron Johnson (R-WI)

|-

|Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs

|Tim Kaine (D-VA)

|Jim Risch (R-ID)

|-

|International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection, and Peace Corps

|Tim Kaine (D-VA), until 2013<br />Ed Markey (D-MA), from 2013

|John Barrasso (R-WY)

|}

See also

  • List of United States Senate committees

Notes

References

Further reading

  • Carter, Ralph G. and James Scott, eds. Choosing to Lead : Understanding Congressional Foreign Policy Entrepreneurs (Duke University Press, 2009)
  • Crabb, Cecil Van Meter, and Pat M. Holt. Invitation to struggle: Congress, the president, and foreign policy (CQ Press, 1992)
  • Dahl, Robert A. Congress and Foreign Policy (1950)
  • Farnsworth, David Nelson. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations (University of Illinois Press, 1961), a topical survey of the committee's activity from 1947 to 1956.
  • Frye, Alton. "'Gobble'uns' and foreign policy: a review," Journal of Conflict Resolution (1964) 8#3 pp: 314–321. Historiographical review of major books
  • Gagnon, Frédérick. "Dynamic Men: Vandenberg, Fulbright, Helms and the Activity of the Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Since 1945." online (2013)
  • Gazell, James A. "Arthur H. Vandenberg, Internationalism, and the United Nations." Political Science Quarterly (1973): 375–394. in JSTOR
  • Gould, Lewis. The Most Exclusive Club : A History of the Modern United States Senate (2006)
  • Hewes, James E. Jr. "Henry Cabot Lodge and the League of Nations". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society (1970) 114#4 pp: 245–255.
  • Hitchens, Harold L., "Influences of the Congressional Decision to Pass the Marshall Plan" Western Political Science Quarterly (1968) 21#1 pp: 51–68. in JSTOR
  • Jewell, Malcolm E. Senatorial Politics and Foreign Policy (U. of Kentucky Press, 1962)
  • Kaplan, Lawrence S. The Conversion of Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg: From Isolation to International Engagement (University Press of Kentucky, 2015)
  • Link, William A. Righteous Warrior: Jesse Helms and the Rise of Modern Conservatism (2008)
  • McCormick, James M. "Decision making in the foreign affairs and foreign relations committees." in Randall B. Ripley and James M. Lindsay, eds.. Congress resurgent: foreign and defense policy on Capitol Hill (University of Michigan press, 1993) pp: 115–153
  • Maguire, Lori. "The US Congress and the politics of Afghanistan: an analysis of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees during George W Bush's second term." Cambridge Review of International Affairs (2013) 26#2 pp: 430–452.
  • Robinson, James A. Congress and Foreign Policy-Making (1962), statistical study of roll calls emphasizing the importance of the committee
  • Spanier, John, and Joseph Nogee, eds. Congress, the Presidency and American Foreign Policy (Elsevier, 2013)
  • Warburg, Gerald Felix. Conflict and consensus: The struggle between Congress and the president over foreign policymaking (HarperCollins Publishers, 1989)
  • Woods, Randall Bennett. Fulbright : A Biography (Cambridge University Press, 1995)
  • Young, Roland. Congressional Politics in the Second World War (1958), pp 168–96

Primary sources

  • Vandenberg, Arthur Hendrick, and Joe Alex Morris, eds. The private papers of Senator Vandenberg. (1952)
  • U.S. Senate Committee of Foreign Relations Official Website (Archive)
  • Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Legislation activity and reports, Congress.gov.
  • U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) Page for the Committee of Foreign Relations