[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1802 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1802

To direct the Secretary of Defense to establish a fund for the conduct 
of collaborative defense projects between the United States and Israel 
           in emerging technologies, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 1, 2023

    Mr. Peters (for himself, Mrs. Fischer, Mr. Budd, and Ms. Rosen) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                     Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of Defense to establish a fund for the conduct 
of collaborative defense projects between the United States and Israel 
           in emerging technologies, 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 ``United States-Israel Future of 
Warfare Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. FUND FOR CONDUCT OF COLLABORATIVE DEFENSE PROJECTS BETWEEN THE 
              UNITED STATES AND ISRAEL IN EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The strategic partnership between the United States and 
        Israel is mutually beneficial, reinforcing shared moral values 
        and security interests while promoting peace and regional 
        stability.
            (2) A strong strategic relationship between the United 
        States and Israel, and enhanced bilateral cooperation between 
        such countries in defense, homeland security, cybersecurity, 
        space, and other key areas, ensure that both countries can 
        confront current and future emerging defense challenges.
            (3) Israel is a global leader and innovator in the 
        development of defense technology and is one of the closest 
        foreign defense partners of the United States.
            (4) On September 14, 2016, the United States and Israel 
        signed a 10-year memorandum of understanding reaffirming the 
        importance of continuing annual United States military 
        assistance to Israel (and other defense programs in areas such 
        as missile defense, counter tunneling, and counter-unmanned 
        aircraft systems) in a way that enhances the security of Israel 
        and strengthens the bilateral relationship between the two 
        countries.
            (5) On July 12, 2022, President Joe Biden and former 
        Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid committed to elevating the 
        strategic partnership between the United States and Israel to 
        new heights by launching the Strategic High-Level Dialogue on 
        Technology, tasked with establishing a technological 
        partnership between the United States and Israel with respect 
        to critical and emerging technologies and solutions to global 
        challenges.
            (6) On July 14, 2022, President Joe Biden and former 
        Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid signed a joint declaration, 
        entitled the ``Jerusalem U.S.-Israel Strategic Partnership 
        Joint Declaration'', that reaffirms the steadfast commitment of 
        the United States to strengthening the self-defense capability 
        of Israel and to moving forward ``the U.S.-Israel defense 
        partnership through cooperation in cutting-edge defense 
        technologies such as high energy laser weapons systems to 
        defend the skies of Israel and in the future those of other 
        U.S. and Israel security partners''.
            (7) Since 2016, Congress has appropriated $320,000,000 for 
        counter-tunneling cooperation between the United States 
        (specifically the Irregular Warfare Technical Support 
        Directorate of the Department of Defense) and Israel, which has 
        resulted in the development of counter-tunnel technology that 
        enhances the capability of the United States and Israel to deal 
        with tunnel threats at the borders of such countries and 
        elsewhere.
            (8) Since 2020, Congress has appropriated $88,000,000 for 
        counter-unmanned aircraft systems cooperation between the 
        United States (specifically the Irregular Warfare Technical 
        Support Directorate of the Department of Defense) and Israel, 
        which has resulted in the co-development of counter-unmanned 
        aircraft systems for use by the United States Armed Forces, the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the United States Secret 
        Service.
            (9) In January 2023, the Irregular Warfare Technical 
        Support Directorate of the Department of Defense awarded Israel 
        Aerospace Industries a multi-million dollar contract to rapidly 
        develop and deliver a loitering munition known as ``ROC-X'' to 
        provide ground-based tactical forces with more precise 
        capabilities and to improve the safety and security of United 
        States warfighters.
            (10) Over the last few years, the Irregular Warfare 
        Technical Support Directorate of the Department of Defense and 
        the Directorate of Defense Research and Engineering of the 
        Ministry of Defense of Israel have hosted a competition known 
        as the ``MOSAIC Challenge'' for the purpose of identifying 
        cutting-edge hardware and software solutions to address 
        challenging and longstanding technological gaps relating to 
        remote autonomous indoor maneuverability.
    (b) Statement of Policy.--It is the policy of the United States to 
support and encourage further defense collaboration with Israel in 
areas of emerging technologies that may enable the development of the 
warfare capabilities of the United States and Israel so as to meet 
emerging defense challenges, including with respect to the areas of 
artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, directed energy, and 
automation.
    (c) United States-Israel Warfare Research and Development Fund.--
            (1) Establishment.--The Secretary of Defense shall 
        establish a fund, to be known as the ``United States-Israel 
        Future of Warfare Research and Development Fund'' (in this 
        section referred to as the ``Fund'').
            (2) Use of funds.--Amounts in the Fund shall be available 
        for the conduct of collaborative defense projects between the 
        United States and Israel in areas of emerging technologies, 
        including artificial intelligence, automation, cybersecurity, 
        and directed energy, for the purpose of enabling the United 
        States Armed Forces and the military forces of Israel to meet 
        emerging defense challenges.
            (3) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated to the Fund $50,000,000 for each of fiscal 
        years 2024 through 2028.
                                 <all>