[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6597 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 6597

To establish a Task Force on the Indo-Pacific Treaty Organization, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 5, 2023

  Mr. Lawler introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a Task Force on the Indo-Pacific Treaty Organization, 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 ``Indo-Pacific Treaty Organization 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) For years, the People's Republic of China (``China''), 
        has repeatedly exhibited aggressive and irresponsible behavior 
        towards the United States and its allies and partners in the 
        Indo-Pacific. This includes establishing overseas military 
        bases in the South China Sea, deploying ships and planes near 
        Japan's Senkaku Islands, invading Taiwan's air space, and 
        sending a high-altitude surveillance balloon over the United 
        States.
            (2) For years, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea 
        (``North Korea'') has repeatedly exhibited aggressive and 
        erratic behavior towards the United States and its allies and 
        partners in the Indo-Pacific. This includes conducting missile 
        tests dangerously close to South Korea and Japan as well as 
        deepening ties with the Chinese Communist Party and other 
        hostile regimes.
            (3) Both China and North Korea pose significant risks to 
        regional security in the Indo-Pacific, to United States 
        security, and to international security.
            (4) It is critical that the United States work with allies 
        and partners to proactively deter further aggression from China 
        and North Korea to preserve peace, ensure prosperity, and 
        advance democracy.

SEC. 3. TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall establish a task force, to 
be known as the ``Task Force on the Indo-Pacific Treaty Organization'' 
(in this section referred to as the ``Task Force'') to--
            (1) analyze the conduct of China and North Korea, as well 
        as the security situation in the Indo-Pacific; and
            (2) determine whether a collective security agreement 
        between the United States and Indo-Pacific allies and partners 
        could serve as an effective deterrent to further aggression.
    (b) Allies and Partners.--The Indo-Pacific allies and partners 
described in subsection (a)(2) may include Japan, South Korea, the 
Philippines, Australia, Thailand, New Zealand, India, and any other 
country in the Indo-Pacific region the Task Force determines 
appropriate.
    (c) Membership.--The Task Force established pursuant to subsection 
(a) shall be--
            (1) chaired by the Secretary of State; and
            (2) consist of the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the 
        Treasury, Secretary of Commerce, the Director of National 
        Intelligence, the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian 
        and Pacific Affairs, and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
        Indo-Pacific Security Affairs.
    (d) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
establishment of the Task Force, the Secretary of State shall submit to 
the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Armed Services of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate a report that contains 
the results of the analysis described in subsection (a) and any 
recommendations of the Task Force with respect to the terms of such a 
collective security agreement.
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