S.Amdt. 6230

1. Adds SEC. 1254. INDO-PACIFIC ENGAGEMENT at the end of subtitle D of title XII

   Adds a section

   In S.Amdt. 5499 as proposed

   (2) modifies or deletes in any way the content of the project as a result of any direction from any entity of the Government of the People's Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party.

   Inserted: SEC. 1254. INDO-PACIFIC ENGAGEMENT.

   Inserted: (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the "Indo-Pacific Engagement Act".

   Inserted: (b) Definitions.--In this section:

   Inserted: (1) Congressional foreign affairs committees.--The term "congressional foreign affairs committees" means--

   Inserted: (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;

   Inserted: (B) the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;

   Inserted: (C) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and

   Inserted: (D) the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, Related Programs of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.

   Inserted: (2) Indo-pacific region.--The term "Indo-Pacific region" means--

   Inserted: (A) the countries under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the Department of State; and

   Inserted: (B) the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

   Inserted: (3) Principals.--The term "principals" means--

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   Inserted: (A) the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs;

   Inserted: (B) the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs; and

   Inserted: (C) the Assistant Administrator for Asia of the United States Agency for International Development.

   Inserted: (c) Report.--

   Inserted: (1) In general.--Each time the President submits a budget to Congress pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, United States Code, for each of the fiscal years 2024 through 2028, the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, in coordination with the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs and the Assistant Administrator for Asia of the United States Agency for International Development, shall submit a report to the congressional foreign affairs committees that assesses the resources and activities required to achieve the policy objectives described in paragraph (3).

   Inserted: (2) Criteria.--The report required under paragraph (1)--

   Inserted: (A) shall reflect the objective, autonomous, and independent assessment of the activities, resources, and costs required to achieve policy objectives described in paragraph (3) by the principals, the subordinate and parallel offices providing input into the assessment, with the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs serving as the final decision-making authority on the contents of the report;

   Inserted: (B) shall cover a period of 5 fiscal years, beginning with the fiscal year following the fiscal year during which the report is submitted;

   Inserted: (C) shall incorporate input from United States Ambassadors in the Indo-Pacific region provided explicitly for the required report;

   Inserted: (D) may include information gathered through consultation with program offices and subject matter experts in relevant functional bureaus, as deemed necessary by the principals; and

   Inserted: (E) shall not be subject to fiscal guidance or global strategic tradeoffs associated with the annual President's budget request.

   Inserted: (3) Policy objectives.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall assess the activities and resources required--

   Inserted: (A) to implement the Interim National Security Strategic Guidance, or the most recent National Security Strategy, with respect to the Indo-Pacific region;

   Inserted: (B) to implement the 2022 Indo-Pacific Strategy of the United States, or successor documents, that set forth the United States Government's strategy toward the Indo-Pacific region;

   Inserted: (C) to implement the State-USAID Joint Strategic Plan with respect to the Indo-Pacific region;

   Inserted: (D) to enhance meaningful diplomatic and economic relations with allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific and demonstrate an enduring United States commitment to the Indo-Pacific region; and

   Inserted: (E) to secure and advance United States national interests in the Indo-Pacific region, including through countering the malign influence of the Government of the People's Republic of China.

   Inserted: (4) Matters to be included.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall include--

   Inserted: (A) a description of the bilateral and multilateral goals of the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs for the period covered in the report that the principals deem necessary to accomplish the policy objectives described in paragraph (3), disaggregated by country and forum;

   Inserted: (B) a timeline with annual benchmarks for achieving the policy objectives described in paragraph (3);

   Inserted: (C) an assessment of the sufficiency of United States diplomatic personnel and facilities currently available in the Indo-Pacific region to achieve the policy objectives described in paragraph (3), through consultation with United States embassies in the region, including--

   Inserted: (i) a list, in priority order, of locations in the Indo-Pacific region that require additional diplomatic personnel or facilities;

   Inserted: (ii) a description of locations where the United States may be able to collocate diplomatic personnel at allied or partner embassies and consulates;

   Inserted: (iii) a discussion of embassies or consulates where diplomatic staff could be reduced within the Indo-Pacific region, as appropriate; and

   Inserted: (iv) a detailed description of the fiscal and personnel resources required to fill gaps identified;

   Inserted: (D) a detailed plan to expand United States diplomatic engagement and foreign assistance presence in the Pacific Island nations during the succeeding 5-year period, including a description of "quick impact" programs that can be developed and implemented within the first fiscal year of the period covered in the report;

   Inserted: (E) a discussion of the resources needed to enhance United States strategic messaging and spotlight coercive behavior by the People's Republic of China;

   Inserted: (F) a detailed description of the resources and policy tools needed to expand the United States' ability to offer high-quality infrastructure projects in strategically significant parts of the Indo-Pacific region, with a particular focus on expanding investments in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands;

   Inserted: (G) a gap assessment of security assistance by country, and of the resources needed to fill those gaps;

   Inserted: (H) a description of the resources and policy tools needed to facilitate continued private sector investment in partner countries in the Indo-Pacific region; and

   Inserted: (I) a discussion of any additional bilateral or regional assistance resources that the principals determine are necessary to achieve the policy objectives described in paragraph (3).

   Inserted: (5) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in an unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

   Inserted: (6) Distribution.--Not later than February 1 each year, the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs shall make the report required under paragraph (1) available to--

   Inserted: (A) the Secretary of State;

   Inserted: (B) the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID);

   Inserted: (C) the Deputy Secretary of State;

   Inserted: (D) the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources;

   Inserted: (E) the Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programming at USAID;

   Inserted: (F) the Deputy Administrator for Management and Resources at USAID;

   Inserted: (G) the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs;

   Inserted: (H) the Director of Foreign Assistance at the Department of State;

   Inserted: (I) the Director of the Office of Foreign Assistance at USAID; and

   Inserted: (J) the Director of Policy Planning at the Department of State.

   Original wording

   At the end of subtitle D of title XII, add the following:

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As printed