[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2511 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2511
To prohibit the availability of foreign assistance to certain countries
that do not recognize the sovereignty of Taiwan, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 6, 2023
Mr. Ogles (for himself, Mr. Tiffany, Mrs. Boebert, Mr. Brecheen, Mrs.
Miller of Illinois, and Mr. Moore of Alabama) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To prohibit the availability of foreign assistance to certain countries
that do not recognize the sovereignty of Taiwan, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Defund China's Allies Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The global political influence campaign of the People's
Republic of China (PRC) has contributed to numerous countries
in Central America and the Caribbean switching political
allegiances from Taiwan to China over the past several years.
(2) Costa Rica was the first Central American country to
abandon a political relationship with Taiwan in 2007. Panama
chose to recognize the PRC in 2017. El Salvador chose to cut
ties with Taiwan in 2018, over the latter's unwillingness to
fund a financially unsustainable port. The Dominican Republic
abandoned Taiwan that same year. In December 2021, the
dictatorial Marxist government of Daniel Ortega chose to sever
ties with Taiwan, and in March 2023, President Castro of
Honduras, a fellow Marxist, chose to do the same thing.
(3) Given the proximity of these countries to the United
States, these switches in political allegiances necessarily
represent a more tangible threat to United States national
security interests and must be confronted.
(4) United States efforts to condemn these countries'
willing diplomatic shift toward a genocidal government is
undermined by an incomprehensible adherence to the so-called
``One China'' policy, on terms dictated by the Chinese
Communist Party.
(5) To pose a credible deterrence threat to the People's
Republic of China, the United States must first admit that the
continuation of anachronistic foreign policy--based on the idea
that the Chinese Communist Party is a responsible, good faith
actor--is no longer a reasonable or even rational course of
action. To that end, the United States must support full
diplomatic relations with Taiwan and Taiwan's full and
unmitigated membership into the international community.
(6) Good-faith assumptions about the Chinese Communist
Party that have lingered since the 1970s have proven false.
China has demonstrated its unwillingness to work
collaboratively with the international community, including
through its efforts to hijack the global market and the rules-
based international order. China's continued assault on the
natural rights of the individual--including through the ongoing
genocide of the Uyghurs and other populations--highlight
Beijing's cruelty and its indifference to the concept of basic
human decency.
(7) The Chinese Communist Party has repeatedly utilized
violence and the threat of violence to coerce Taiwan and
undermine Taiwan's democratically elected government, in clear
contradiction of existing United States law (the Taiwan
Relations Act), which reads: ``the United States decision to
establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of
China rests upon the expectation that the future of Taiwan will
be determined by peaceful means''.
(8) The CCP's ongoing efforts to delegitimize Taiwan, if
not checked, increases the risk of armed conflict by
threatening to completely isolate Taiwan from any political
support; as a result, the United States government must work to
deter these malign efforts and mitigate their effectiveness,
including by committing to the following:
(A) Establishing full diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
(B) Imposing restrictions on foreign assistance on
countries, particularly those in the Western
Hemisphere, who choose to offer full political support
to the People's Republic of China.
(C) Working with allies and partners who maintain
unofficial relations with Taiwan (including through
Representative offices) to pursue full diplomatic
relations with Taiwan.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that not later than 30 days after the
enactment of this Act, the President should establish full diplomatic
relations with Taiwan.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, with
respect to each country listed in subsection (c), no Federal funds may
be made available in the form of foreign assistance (including
humanitarian assistance or security assistance) to such country during
the period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act and
ending on the date described in subsection (b) for such country.
(b) Termination.--The date described in this subsection, with
respect to a country, is the earlier of--
(1) the date that is 30 days after the date on which the
President certifies to the Congress that such country has
resumed or established full diplomatic relations with Taiwan;
or
(2) the date that is 10 years after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(c) Countries Specified.--The countries listed in this subsection
are the following:
(1) Honduras.
(2) Nicaragua.
(3) Dominica.
(4) Antigua and Barbuda.
(5) Grenada.
(6) Cuba.
(7) Bahamas.
(8) Barbados.
(9) Jamaica.
(10) Trinidad and Tobago.
(11) Panama.
(12) Costa Rica.
(13) The Dominican Republic.
(14) El Salvador.
(15) Bolivia.
(16) Uruguay.
(17) Guyana.
(18) Suriname.
(19) Venezuela.
(20) Solomon Islands.
(21) Kiribati.
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