[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4711 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4711
To establish a United States-Ukraine Strategic Defense Innovation
Working Group, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 9, 2026
Ms. Rosen (for herself and Mr. Rounds) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a United States-Ukraine Strategic Defense Innovation
Working Group, 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 ``Strategic Unmanned Systems
Partnership Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this section:
(1) Congressional defense committees.--The term
``congressional defense committees'' has the meaning give such
term in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code.
(2) Covered system.--The term ``covered system'' means--
(A) an unmanned system that--
(i) is designed for a limited number of
missions;
(ii) is expendable in high-threat
environments; and
(iii) is characterized by a low per-unit
cost, relative to the value of the targets the
unmanned system is designed to engage; and
(B) includes--
(i) the enabling software and hardware of
such an unmanned system;
(ii) unmanned aerial vehicles, unmanned
underwater vehicles, and unmanned surface
vehicles;
(iii) capabilities to counter unmanned
systems, including early warning systems,
jamming systems, and interceptors; and
(iv) command and control architecture,
including software and hardware, to enable the
integrated, secure, and resilient operation of
unmanned systems and capabilities to counter
unmanned systems.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Defense.
(4) Working group.--The term ``Working Group'' means the
Strategic Defense Innovation Working Group established under
section 3.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF STRATEGIC DEFENSE INNOVATION WORKING GROUP.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in coordination with the
Secretary of State, shall seek to engage with relevant stakeholders in
Ukraine to establish a Strategic Defense Innovation Working Group to
explore--
(1) pathways for the co-development, co-production,
acquisition, and transfer of covered systems; and
(2) the development of related mutual technology transfer
frameworks.
(b) Composition.--The Working Group shall be co-chaired by the
following:
(1) The Under Secretary of Defense.
(2) The Director of the Defense Innovation Unit.
(3) The Director of the Joint Interagency Task Force 401.
(4) The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and
Sustainment.
(5) The Commander of the Joint Special Operations Command.
(c) Other Participants.--The Secretary shall seek the participation
in the Working Group of representatives of the following:
(1) The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
(2) The military forces of Ukraine.
(3) The Brave1 Defense Tech Cluster.
(4) The North Atlantic Treaty Organization-Ukraine Joint
Analysis, Training, and Education Center.
SEC. 4. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
(a) In General.--The co-chairs of the Working Group shall be
responsible for engaging with the other participants in the Working
Group--
(1) to systematically analyze and apply lessons learned
from the methodologies employed by the military forces of
Ukraine and the domestic defense industrial base of Ukraine to
accelerate the development, production, and fielding of covered
systems;
(2) to identify the Ukraine-designed covered systems that--
(A) have demonstrated high operational utility in
active combat; and
(B) offer strategic capability enhancements for the
United States Armed Forces;
(3) to provide recommendations to expand and improve
incorporation of Ukraine-designed covered systems in Blue UAS
programs;
(4) to develop defense trade foundational agreements
between the United States and Ukraine, including--
(A) a mutual technology transfer framework, which
shall include--
(i) mutual data exchange protocols to
facilitate the secure sharing of relevant
battlefield and military information, such as
telemetry data and other electronic warfare
signal profiles; and
(ii) joint intellectual property ownership
frameworks that--
(I) protect the background
intellectual property of all
participants; and
(II) facilitate the co-development
and co-production of Ukraine-designed
covered systems; and
(B) a memorandum of understanding on reciprocal
defense procurement; and
(5) to assess the feasibility of testing United States-
manufactured covered systems in Ukraine, including by deploying
United States-manufactured covered systems to operational units
of Ukraine for evaluation in active combat scenarios.
(b) Meetings.--The Working Group shall convene not less frequently
than once every 120 days, with meeting frequency determined by the co-
chairs, in consultation with the other participants in the Working
Groups.
SEC. 5. PRIORITIZATION OF UKRAINE-DESIGNED COVERED SYSTEMS.
(a) In General.--The co-chairs of the Working Group shall
prioritize the Ukraine-designed covered systems identified under
section 4(a)(2) for co-development, co-production, and acquisition,
including by--
(1) analyzing the extent to which Ukraine-designed covered
systems meet existing statutory requirements with respect to
fielding;
(2) identifying authorities that may be used to accelerate
the establishment and approval of joint ventures, cooperative
production agreements, or licensed production agreements
involving the Department of Defense and the military forces of
Ukraine;
(3) identifying authorities that may be used to accelerate
traditional procurement pathways for Ukraine-designed covered
systems;
(4) conducting a detailed supply chain assessment of the
components and inputs that would be used in the co-production
of Ukraine-designed covered systems;
(5) identifying the costs associated with co-developing and
co-producing Ukraine-designed covered systems in the United
States; and
(6) identifying the steps necessary in order to produce
Ukraine-designed covered systems at scale in the United States,
including a description of opportunities to leverage civilian
manufacturing expertise and infrastructure to address
production bottlenecks.
(b) Remediation Pathway.--With respect to Ukraine-designed covered
systems identified under section 4(a)(2) that do not meet existing
statutory requirements with respect to fielding, the Working Group
shall explore alternative pathways for the fielding of such covered
systems, including through--
(1) SkyFoundry;
(2) the UAS Marketplace; and
(3) Drone Dominance.
SEC. 6. REPORTS AND BRIEFINGS.
(a) Initial Strategy and Action Plan.--Not later than 120 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Working Group shall
provide the congressional defense committees with a briefing on the
initial strategy for the co-development, co-production, and acquisition
of Ukraine-designed covered systems.
(b) Semiannual Updates.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date on
which the briefing required by subsection (a) is provided, and
every 180 days thereafter until the date on which the Working
Group terminates, the Working Group shall submit to the
congressional defense committees a report on the progress of
the Working Group.
(2) Elements.--Each report required by paragraph (1) shall,
to the maximum extent practicable, include, for the preceding
180-day period, the following:
(A) A list of Ukraine-designed covered systems
identified for prioritization, including the current
status of such covered systems with respect to
technical and legal evaluation, certification, and
integration with existing United States force posture
and operational needs.
(B) A detailed list of specific fast-track
acquisition or waiver authorities that may be used to
accelerate the co-development, co-production, or
acquisition of Ukraine-designed covered systems.
(C) A supply chain analysis of the sourcing of
inputs and component parts to eliminate dependence on
countries of concern, such as the Russian Federation,
the People's Republic of China, Iran, and the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
(D) A comprehensive framework to facilitate the
transition of prioritized Ukraine-designed covered
systems from identification to co-development and co-
production at scale, including an assessment of the
feasibility of using of the following for such purpose:
(i) Joint ventures.
(ii) Cooperative production agreements.
(iii) Licensed production agreements.
(E) A detailed description of intellectual property
ownership frameworks that could be used to facilitate
the co-development and co-production of prioritized
Ukraine-designed covered systems.
(F) A description of specific regulatory, legal, or
policy barriers that hinder the establishment of joint
ventures, cooperative production agreements, or
licensed production agreements.
(G) A description of regulatory, export-control,
and certification barriers that impede the acquisition
of Ukraine-designed covered systems.
(3) Form.--Each report required by paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in an unclassified form but may include a classified
annex.
SEC. 7. TERMINATION.
(a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), the Working Group shall
terminate on the date that is five years after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(b) One-Year Extension.--The Working Group may continue in effect
until the date that is six year after the date of the enactment of this
Act if the Secretary--
(1) determines that a one-year extension is vital to
national security; and
(2) submits to the congressional defense committees a
written justification for such an extension.
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