S.Amdt. 652

SA 652. Mr. COTTON 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 A of title XII, add the following:

SEC. 1213. DESIGNATION OF THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA AS A
MAJOR NON-NATO ALLY.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Major non-NATO ally (MNNA) status is a designation
given by the United States Government to close allies that
have strategic working relationships with the United States
Armed Forces but are not members of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO).
(2) Major non-NATO ally status is a designation under
United States law that provides foreign partners with certain
benefits in the areas of defense trade and security
cooperation.
(3) The major non-NATO ally designation is a powerful
symbol of the close relationship the United States shares
with those countries and demonstrates our deep respect for
the friendship for the countries to which it is extended.
(4) Major non-NATO ally status provides military and
economic privileges, but does not entail any security
commitments to the designated country.
(5) Privileges resulting from major non-NATO ally
designation under section 517 of the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2321k) include--
(A) eligibility for loans of material, supplies, or
equipment for cooperative research, development, testing, or
evaluation purposes;
(B) eligibility as a location for United States-owned War
Reserve Stockpiles to be placed on the territory of the ally
outside of United States military facilities;
(C) the ability to enter into agreements with the United
States for the cooperative furnishing of training on a
bilateral or multilateral basis, if the financial
arrangements are reciprocal and provide for reimbursement of
all United States direct costs;
(D) eligibility, to the maximum extent feasible, for
priority delivery of excess defense articles transferred
under section 516 of the Foreign Assistance Act (22 U.S.C.
2321j), if located on the southern or south-eastern flank of
NATO; and
(E) eligibility for consideration to purchase depleted
uranium ammunition.
(6) Privileges resulting from major non-NATO ally
designation under section 2350a of title 10, United States
Code, include--
(A) eligibility to enter into a memorandum of understanding
or other formal agreement with the United States Department
of Defense for the purpose of conducting cooperative research
and development projects on defense equipment and munitions;
(B) the ability for firms of a major non-NATO ally, as with
NATO countries, to bid on contracts for maintenance, repair,
or overhaul of United States Department of Defense equipment
outside the United States; and
(C) eligibility for funding to procure explosives detection
devices and other counter-terrorism research and development
projects under the auspices of the Department of State's
Technical Support Working Group.
(7) The 18 countries that are currently designated as major
non-NATO allies under section 2321k of title 22, United
States Code, and section 2350a of title 10, United States
Code, are--
(A) Argentina;
(B) Australia;
(C) Bahrain;
(D) Brazil;

[[Page S2748]]

(E) Colombia;
(F) Egypt;
(G) Israel;
(H) Japan;
(I) Jordan;
(J) Kuwait;.
(K) Morocco;
(L) New Zealand;
(M) Pakistan;
(N) the Philippines;
(O) Qatar;
(P) South Korea;
(Q) Thailand; and
(R) Tunisia.
(8) In addition, section 1206 of the Foreign Relations
Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 107-228; 22
U.S.C. 2321k note) provides that Taiwan shall be treated as a
major non-NATO ally, without formal designation as such.
(b) Sense of Congress.--Congress--
(1) reaffirms the importance of the United States-Kingdom
of Saudi Arabia alliance;
(2) recognizes that one of the United States' most
important priorities and challenges in Saudi Arabia is to
help the kingdom provide for its own security; and
(3) supports the designation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
as a major non-NATO ally.
______