Pacific Partnership Act

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the very kind remarks of my colleague from North Carolina (Ms. Manning).

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in very strong support of this bill, the Pacific Partnership Act, which aims to broaden and deepen our critical partnerships with our fellow nations of the Pacific.

I first thank my colleague, the gentlewoman from American Samoa (Mrs.

Radewagen), and our 24 bipartisan cosponsors, as well as

our House Committee on Foreign Affairs, which reported out

this bill unanimously.

Our country's Indo-Pacific Strategy states in no uncertain terms that no region is of more consequence to the world and to everyday Americans than the Indo-Pacific. The United States and our allies and partners around the world, who are aligned with an international rules-based order, share the common vision of a free and open Indo-

Pacific, whose governance, priorities, goals, and prosperity are determined by the countries of the Indo-Pacific without manipulation and dominance by malign actors.

This is especially true of the Pacific Islands themselves in the heart of the Pacific, which today face the challenges of increased natural disasters and human and drug trafficking, economic sustainability, threats to democracy, and more.

It is crucial that the United States continue to extend our hand of full partnership in assisting the countries of the Pacific to meet these challenges, as we have for generations.

Our bill, H.R. 7159, advances these goals. It first recognizes that the United States is and has been for two-plus centuries now a Pacific nation and has longstanding and enduring cultural, historic, economic, strategic, and people-to-people connections with the Pacific Islands based on shared values, cultural histories, common interests, and a commitment to fostering mutual understanding and cooperation. It acknowledges that the United States should support the vision, values, and objectives of the Pacific Islands.

This bill requires the President to develop a Strategy for Pacific Partnership that will set the goals for United States' engagement with the Pacific Islands, assess the threats and pressures to the region, and a plan to address such threats, and analyze the needs and goals of the Pacific Islands in the context of the national interests of the United States.

Critically, our bill requires a strategy to be developed in full consultation with the governments of the Pacific Island countries and their multilateral organizations, ensuring that the United States supports the priorities of, by, and for the Pacific itself, and not of other countries who may be pursuing inconsistent priorities.

Our bill also extends diplomatic courtesies and traditional protocols to the Pacific Islands Forum, the primary multilateral organization of the region. The Pacific Islands Forum engages in critical consensus- building work and just held its 53rd Leaders Meeting in Tonga 2 weeks ago in which Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell led the United States delegation.

The extension of such diplomatic courtesies will foster creation of a Pacific Islands Forum mission to the United States, which will strengthen the collective voice of the Pacific internationally in opposition to other attempts to divide and isolate the Pacific Islands, and further expand our relationship and collaboration on strategic matters of mutual interests.

Finally, as has been noted, our bill requires increased collaboration with our partners and allies in the region, including Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and more, ensuring the most efficient and effective use of limited resources and programs. This is critical, as we are much stronger when we do this important work in coordination with our allies and partners.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the passage of the Pacific Partnership Act.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7159) to bolster United States engagement with the Pacific Islands region, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this measure.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7159, the Pacific Partnership Act. I was proud to be the lead Republican on this bipartisan bill introduced by the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Case).

As a grateful and proud Pacific Islander, I remind my colleagues that the United States is a Pacific nation, from the West Coast of the continental U.S., to Hawaii, to American Samoa, to the Northern Mariana Islands, to Guam. The Pacific is critically important to American interests, American values, and to the Americans I have the privilege to represent.

However, in recent years, the Chinese Communist Party has mounted an aggressive campaign to increase its influence among Pacific Island countries. The 2022 security pact between Beijing and the Solomon Islands was seen by many as an alarming wake-up call. The CCP is pressuring island nations to overturn their recognition of Taiwan, illegally fishing in their exclusive economic zones, and bribing local law enforcement to influence local elections.

While Congress has done its job to extend the Compacts of Free Association for another 20 years, those only focus on three Pacific Island countries. There are 11 other countries who need our attention.

The United States has enduring cultural, historic, economic, and people-to-people connections with the Pacific Islands. We just opened up an embassy in Vanuatu, but we must do more.

Pacific Islands are strategically crucial to the United States. For that reason, the Pacific Partnership Act requires the State Department to submit to Congress a Strategy for Pacific Partnership that describes our goals for engaging with the Pacific Islands in the diplomatic, defense, and economic domains. It gives Congress the oversight visibility to ensure that the executive branch formulates and implements a strategy that addresses the many shared threats facing Pacific Island countries.

It also requires that we coordinate and collaborate with our allies and partners, like Australia, Taiwan, Japan, and New Zealand, to ensure that our programs directed toward the Pacific Islands are nonduplicative and complementary. The Pacific Partnership Act will help to better focus the United States' engagement with Pacific Island nations.

Mr. Speaker, I support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I thank, again, my friend from Hawaii, Mr. Case, for leading this bill that we introduced together.

The Pacific Partnership Act will help ensure that our area of the world receives the attention it requires in U.S. diplomatic, defense, and economic policymaking.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 7159, the Pacific Partnership Act, as amended, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud that, in this Congress, we have been able to work in a bipartisan manner to strengthen our relationships with the Pacific Islands, from the bipartisan amendments, to the Compacts of Free Association, to the legislation before us today.

These legislative efforts support the leadership of the Biden-Harris administration, which hosted two summits with the Pacific Islands at the White House, opened new embassies in the Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu, and released the first-ever U.S.-Pacific Partnership Strategy.

This legislation would codify that strategy, ensuring that future administrations maintain that focus and provide other authorities to strengthen our outreach to the Pacific Islands and our coordination with allies and partners.

Together, we are affirming a fundamental point: The United States is a Pacific nation. We are determined to deepen and maintain our lasting partnerships with each of the Pacific Islands, and we will do so by listening to and incorporating the principles of what the Pacific Islands have articulated themselves. That collaborative approach is reflected in this bill.

I thank the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Case), my good friend, for his leadership and dedication to this critical region. His work on this measure is a testament to our shared commitment to the Pacific and to ensuring that the United States remains a reliable and engaged partner.

Bipartisanship is so important because there is still so much work to be done. Our diplomats, developmental professionals, and Peace Corps volunteers are working tirelessly on the ground.

Can we sustain the resources they need to execute our policy?

Can we follow through on each of the deliverables the United States has promised, including at the Pacific Islands Forum that just concluded at the end of August?

I know each of us here understands the stakes, and I am committed to working with all of my colleagues to ensure that we follow through.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage support for this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Case).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for the purpose of closing.

Mr. Speaker, the Pacific Islands are not just our neighbors. They are our partners. The security and prosperity of this region are directly linked to our own. Together, we can ensure that the United States continues to be a leader in promoting peace, security, and prosperity in the Pacific Islands for generations to come.

Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me and support this important bill. I yield back the balance of my time.