S.Amdt. 357

SA 357. Mr. LEE (for himself and Mr. Padilla) submitted an amendment
intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2226, to authorize
appropriations for fiscal year 2024 for military activities of the
Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense
activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel
strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

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

SEC. 1299L. PROTECTION AND LEGAL PREPAREDNESS FOR
SERVICEMEMBERS ABROAD.

(a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense, in coordination
with the Secretary of State, shall seek to ensure that
members of the Armed Forces stationed in each foreign country
with which the United States maintains a Status of Forces
Agreement are afforded, at a minimum:
(1) the right to legal counsel for his or her defense, in
accordance with the Status of Forces Agreement or other
binding law or agreement with another country;
(2) access to competent language translation services;
(3) a prompt and speedy trial;
(4) the right to be confronted with the witnesses against
him or her; and
(5) a compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his or
her favor if they are within the foreign country's
jurisdiction.
(b) Review Required.--Not later than December 31, 2024, the
Secretary of Defense, in collaboration with the Secretary of
State, shall--
(1) review the 10 largest foreign countries by United
States Armed Forces presence and evaluate local legal
systems, protections afforded by bilateral agreements between
the United States and countries being evaluated, and how the
rights and privileges afforded under such agreements may
differ from United States law; and
(2) brief the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee
on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate on the findings of the review.
(c) Training Required.--The Secretary of Defense shall
review and improve as necessary training and educational
materials for members of the Armed Forces, their spouses, and
dependents, as appropriate, who are stationed in a country
reviewed pursuant to subsection (b)(1) regarding relevant
foreign laws, how such foreign laws may differ from the laws
of the United States, and the rights of accused in common
scenarios under such foreign laws.
(d) Translation Standards and Readiness.--The Secretary of
Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of State, shall
review foreign language standards for servicemembers and
employees of the Department of Defense and Department of
State who are responsible for providing foreign language
translation services in situations involving foreign law
enforcement where a servicemember may be being detained, to
ensure such persons maintain an appropriate proficiency in
the legal terminology and meaning of essential terms in a
relevant language.
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