The enlargement of NATO from 16 members to 19 has been one of the administration's foremost foreign policy goals, one that grew out of a desire, its proponents said, to cement the democratic gains made in the former Warsaw Pact countries after the collapse of communism 10 years ago. But the policy also faced critics, who argued that (welcoming) these three new countries would draw a new line across Europe and antagonize the Russians.  
 Verb: welcoming
Yes