[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 22 (Monday, February 5, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H757-H760]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
UKRAINE CYBERSECURITY COOPERATION ACT OF 2017
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 1997) to encourage United States-Ukraine
cybersecurity cooperation and require a report regarding such
cooperation, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1997
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 ``Ukraine Cybersecurity
Cooperation Act of 2017''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The United States established diplomatic relations with
Ukraine in 1992, following Ukraine's independence from the
Soviet Union.
(2) The United States attaches great importance to the
success of Ukraine's transition to a modern democratic
country with a flourishing market economy.
(3) In an effort to undermine democracy in Ukraine, hackers
targeted the country's voting infrastructure just days before
its 2014 presidential election.
(4) In December 2015, a malicious cyber intrusion into
Ukrainian electric utility companies resulted in widespread
power outages.
(5) As a result of the December 2015 cyber incident, the
United States sent an interagency team to Ukraine, including
representatives from the Department of Energy, the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, and the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation, to help with the investigation and
to assess the vulnerability of Ukraine's infrastructure to
cyber intrusion. The visit was followed up by another
interagency delegation to Ukraine in March 2016 and a May
2016 United States-Ukrainian tabletop exercise on mitigating
attacks against Ukraine's infrastructure.
(6) In response to an escalating series of cyber attacks on
the country's critical infrastructure - including its
national railway system, its major stock exchanges, and its
busiest airport - President Petro Poroshenko declared that
``Cyberspace has turned into another battlefield for state
independence.''.
(7) In May 2017, Ukraine cited activities on Russian social
media platforms, including pro-Russian propaganda and
offensive cyber operations, as threats to Ukrainian national
security.
(8) Following the June 2017 Petya malware event - a global
cyber incident that primarily affected Ukraine - the
Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO) said ``the cyber attacks we have seen. . . very much
highlight the importance of the support, the help NATO
provides . . . gives . . . or provides to Ukraine to
strengthen its cyber defenses, technical and other kinds of
support. We will continue to do that and it's an important
part of our cooperation with Ukraine.''.
(9) In September 2017, the United States and Ukraine
conducted the first United States-Ukraine Bilateral Cyber
Dialogue in Kyiv, during which both sides affirmed their
commitment to an internet that is open, interoperable,
reliable, and secure, and the United States announced $5
million in new cyber assistance to strengthen Ukraine's
ability to prevent, mitigate, and respond to cyber attacks.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States to--
(1) reaffirm the United States-Ukraine Charter on Strategic
Partnership, which highlights the importance of the bilateral
relationship and outlines enhanced cooperation in the areas
of defense, security, economics and trade, energy security,
democracy, and cultural exchanges;
(2) support continued cooperation between NATO and Ukraine;
(3) support Ukraine's political and economic reforms;
(4) reaffirm the commitment of the United States to the
Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances;
(5) assist Ukraine's efforts to enhance its cybersecurity
capabilities; and
(6) improve Ukraine's ability to respond to Russian-
supported disinformation and propaganda efforts in
cyberspace, including through social media and other outlets.
SEC. 4. UNITED STATES CYBERSECURITY COOPERATION WITH UKRAINE.
(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Secretary of State should take the following actions,
commensurate with United States interests, to assist Ukraine
to improve its cybersecurity:
(1) Provide Ukraine such support as may be necessary to
secure government computer networks from malicious cyber
intrusions, particularly such networks that defend the
critical infrastructure of Ukraine.
(2) Provide Ukraine support in reducing reliance on Russian
information and communications technology.
(3) Assist Ukraine to build its capacity, expand
cybersecurity information sharing, and cooperate on
international cyberspace efforts.
(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate a report on United States cybersecurity cooperation
with Ukraine. Such report shall also include information
relating to the following:
(1) United States efforts to strengthen Ukraine's ability
to prevent, mitigate, and respond to cyber incidents,
including through training, education, technical assistance,
capacity building, and cybersecurity risk management
strategies.
[[Page H758]]
(2) The potential for new areas of collaboration and mutual
assistance between the United States and Ukraine in
addressing shared cyber challenges, including cybercrime,
critical infrastructure protection, and resilience against
botnets and other automated, distributed threats.
(3) NATO's efforts to help Ukraine develop technical
capabilities to counter cyber threats.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brendan
F. Boyle) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
general leave
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks,
and to include any extraneous material in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, we are here to talk about Ukraine and the U.S.-Ukraine
cyber cooperation. Ukraine, of course, is on the front lines of digital
combat as we have learned. Few countries have endured as great a level
of cyber invasion and aggression as has Ukraine at the hands of Russia
and at the hands of other malicious actors as well.
I led a delegation of four Democrats and four Republicans into the
east, into Dnipropetrovsk in the Donbass region, and we had an
opportunity to hear about what is being done to try to tear that
country apart.
This is in addition to the invasion in the east, the occupation of
the east. This is the farthest east one can go in Ukraine today, and
you can see the struggle that everyday people are having with the
disinformation campaign launched against them relentlessly. As
President Poroshenko said, ``Cyberspace has turned into another
battlefield for state independence,'' and that is so true for Ukraine.
Their struggle to defend their independence and their territorial
integrity from Russian aggression extends far beyond the armed conflict
of the occupation of its territory. In 2014, hackers targeted Ukraine's
electoral infrastructure just days before its presidential election.
The following year, a malicious cyber intrusion shut down the country's
electric grid, turning off the lights and turning off the heat in the
dead of winter.
Ukraine's critical infrastructure, including its national railway
system, its major stock exchanges, and its busiest airport, have been
repeatedly targeted by sophisticated cyber attacks.
Most of these continuing assaults have been identified by experts as
Russian in origin. By working with the government in Kiev, we can
better prepare ourselves as well as our friends in partner countries
against similar aggression, including combating Russian disinformation
efforts that rely heavily on disseminating propaganda. That propaganda
poses as legitimate news.
So this bill will enhance our cooperation with Ukraine in addressing
shared cyber challenges, including cybercrime and the protection of
critical infrastructure.
Modern society requires an internet worldwide that is open, that is
reliable, that is secure, which can only be ensured if all those who
seek to preserve it join forces to defeat those who wish to destroy it.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself
such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for bringing up my bipartisan
bill, and I especially want to thank the chairman of our committee, Mr.
Royce of California, for his action and moving on our bipartisan piece
of legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I believe cybersecurity is the national security
challenge of our time. Cyber warfare is inexpensive to carry out and
easy for adversaries to hide behind, making it especially damaging,
difficult to detect, and impossible for the victim to quickly respond.
In January, the CIA attributed to Russian military hackers a cyber
attack that crippled computers in Ukraine last year. This attack wiped
data from the computers of banks, energy firms, senior government
officials, and an airport. The virus went on to affect computer systems
in Denmark, India, and even here in the United States.
For years, Putin has been using Ukraine as a field test for these
cyber attacks. Ukraine, after all, is on the front line for these
nation self-directed cyber attacks, and they are potential harbingers
of attacks on the United States.
By assisting Ukraine, we can learn best practices to best defend
ourselves. For these reasons, I introduced H.R. 1997 with my Republican
colleague from Pennsylvania, Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, which
encourages cooperation between the United States and our ally Ukraine
on matters of cybersecurity and requires a report from the State
Department on best practices to protect ourselves--to the benefit of
both nations.
{time} 1730
In Ukraine, it is no coincidence that cyber attacks against itself
increased when the Ukrainian people self-organized to demand an open
and democratic society in 2014 contrary to Putin's interests.
Days before the 2014 Presidential election, hackers infiltrated
Ukraine's Central Election Commission with a series of attacks that
disabled the website in an attempt to sow distrust in the outcome of
the election of President Poroshenko.
In December of 2015, hackers remotely shut down power at three
regional electricity distribution companies, creating a power outage
affecting more than 200,000 people. We can only imagine what it must
feel like to lose electricity and heat during the winter in Ukraine.
Cyber attacks, unfortunately, have only continued since. Ukraine's
next Presidential election is just next year. Our own elections are
right around the corner later this year, and, of course, the
Presidential election is in 2020.
Both the United States and Ukraine have clear interests in
strengthening our cyber defenses. Moreover, our cooperation toward this
goal will send a strong and important signal of Western support for
Ukraine at a time when it is literally fighting to protect its own
democracy.
We must stand strong with the people of Ukraine and our NATO allies
and come together in furtherance of our cybersecurity defenses. This
bill is a reasonable first step to do just that, and it is obviously
very timely.
I thank Chairman Royce again, as well as Ranking Member Engel for
their hard work and support for this bill, and I urge all of my
colleagues to support it. It is time we address this vital issue.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick), who is an esteemed
member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. And besides Brendan Boyle
here, he is another big Philly Eagles fan.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman so much for all
the work he does on the committee and for bringing the bill to the
floor. I thank my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brendan F. Boyle)
for all of his work on this piece of legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to voice my full support for H.R. 1997, the
U.S.-Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act.
During my career as an FBI agent, I was assigned to the U.S. Embassy
in Kiev, Ukraine, where I worked closely with our Ukrainian
counterparts on a whole host of issues to include cybersecurity.
Mr. Speaker, one thing is clear: we must strengthen our relationship
with Ukraine wherever possible and by whatever means possible. They
have acted as a steadfast ally to the United States against a hostile
Russia.
Further, there should be no doubt that cybersecurity and cyber
warfare are the rising threats of our time. We have seen plenty of
occasions where bad actors--state-sponsored or otherwise--have executed
cyber attacks against private companies, government entities, and the
very institutions upon which our Nation was founded. These attacks will
only continue to increase both in sophistication and frequency as we
continue into the 21st century.
[[Page H759]]
Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues, Democratic and Republican
alike, to support this crucial and necessary piece of legislation both
for the United States and Ukraine, and for all our allies.
Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes
to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Deutch), who is someone who grew up
a strong Philadelphia sports fan.
Mr. DEUTCH. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from the Philadelphia area
who has introduced this important piece of legislation with Mr.
Fitzpatrick, another fine Representative from the Philadelphia sports-
loving area, which gives me the opportunity on the House floor to claim
my Pennsylvania roots and to congratulate the Philadelphia Eagles.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the U.S.-Ukraine Cybersecurity
Cooperation Act introduced by Mr. Boyle and Mr. Fitzpatrick. I thank
Chairman Royce for his ongoing leadership on this issue.
The director of the CIA, Mike Pompeo, said last week that he has
every expectation that Russia will again try to meddle in our
elections. That should concern us. It should also concern us that the
President has decided to ignore Congress and not impose sanctions
against Russia.
But Russia's attacks on the United States follow a playbook that they
have used in their own region, most recently against Ukraine.
In addition to rampant disinformation campaigns and political
interference, Russia has launched numerous cyber attacks against
Ukraine, including knocking out large swaths of its electrical grid in
massive attacks. Those capabilities could one day be used against us
here at home.
That is why the U.S.-Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act is so
important. The United States has an interest both in defending Ukraine
from Russian aggression and in securing our own defenses. Helping
Ukraine actually teaches us best practices for hardening our own
defenses against potential Russian attacks on our critical
infrastructure.
That is why I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1997, the U.S.-
Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act.
Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the
balance of my time to close.
Let me say one thing that strikes me and saddens me. When I hold
townhalls or meetings with constituent groups, usually some variation
of this comment will be made: Why don't you guys get along? Why don't
you do something?
Actually, I then tell them about our work on the Foreign Affairs
Committee. I tell them that, under the leadership of Ed Royce and Eliot
Engel as well as the other members of the committee from both sides of
the aisle, a lot of work does get done and a real spirit of cooperation
prevails in our committee meetings. I think that this piece of
legislation is an example of that.
This is an important issue. We are standing up for Ukraine, but as I
mentioned earlier, we are also doing what is clearly in the best
interests of the United States.
Mr. Speaker, at the risk of sounding immodest, I urge passage of my
legislation, legislation that I have worked on very hard with Brian
Fitzpatrick.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of
my time.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to also recognize and thank my
colleagues, especially Mr. Boyle and Mr. Fitzpatrick, one Democratic
and one Republican, both from Philadelphia, the sponsors of this
bipartisan legislation. I want to thank Mr. Boyle for his work on this
important bill because I think the threat to Ukraine and cyberspace is
not isolated. It shouldn't be ignored. I think that when we talk to the
researchers, they have warned that the attacks on Ukraine by state and
by nonstate actors might be a test run for even larger additional
attacks in the future on the United States and on our NATO allies.
While we must bolster our own capabilities, we should also cooperate
with our friends and partners such as Ukraine because we have got to be
sharing best practices; we have got to improve joint capabilities; and
we have got to provide that mutual assistance to prevent, mitigate, and
respond to those international cyber attacks.
This legislation is going to enhance that effort. And in so doing, it
is going to strengthen our ability to protect our own country from
those who seek to do us harm.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the bipartisan
Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act of 2017. Let me first thank the
hard work of Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, fellow Ukraine Caucus
chair and Representative Brendan Boyle, as well as Chairman Ed Royce
and the Ranking Member Eliot Engel for their support.
As we know all too well, Russian aggression towards Ukraine is not a
new threat. Russia's hostile behavior continues to threaten Ukraine's
freedom and destabilize its critical infrastructure and institutions.
Since Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, over 10,000 people
have been killed and two million people have been uprooted, internally
displaced. Ukraine finds herself on the front lines of hybrid war and
an assault on her sovereignty--this time in the form of cyber warfare.
We as Americans have also been attacked by this insidious form of
hybrid warfare. It is our duty to help other nations resist threat to
liberty. To this day, the fallout of Russian interference in our sacred
electoral process continues to plague our political landscape. At least
21 states, including Ohio, reported Russian hacking attempts in the
2016 election. Experts in the intelligence and defense communities have
all warned that this threat is not going away. In fact, cybersecurity
threats tested in Ukraine will likely be turned on the U.S. in
elections this year.
By supporting this bill, we provide Ukraine with critical upgraded
safeguards she needs to protect herself, her institutions, and her
liberty. Upgrading Ukraine's current technological infrastructure
grants her freedom from Russian technology. It gives her the ability to
share sensitive information on an international level. And, we will
strengthen our own cybersecurity through lessons learned from increased
cooperation with Ukraine.
Ukraine and her people have every right to sovereignty and self-
determination as they seek a more democratic future. It is paramount
that the United States uphold our longstanding commitments to our
allies, as hybrid threats loom. This measure will provide the citizens
of Ukraine with the support they need to defend themselves. That's why
I strongly support this measure, and I urge my colleagues to do the
same.
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1997--the
Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act--offered by our Foreign Affairs
Committee colleague from Pennsylvania, Brenden Boyle.
This bill focuses on how the U.S. and Ukraine can work together to
address cyber threats and how the U.S. can help improve Ukraine's
domestic cybersecurity capabilities.
But it also serves as a reminder to this body, and especially to this
administration, that we need to work to improve our own cybersecurity
defenses and we need to hold those who target us accountable.
Mr. Speaker, the events in Ukraine that spurred the necessity for Mr.
Boyle's bill were a harbinger of things to come for the United States.
Ahead of the 2014 Presidential elections in Ukraine, Russian or pro-
Russian elements hacked into Ukraine's Central Election Commission in a
series of attacks in an attempt to undermine the results and stir up
unrest throughout the country.
Then in December 2015, Putin-backed hackers attacked Ukraine's
infrastructure, compromising three energy distribution companies,
leaving nearly a quarter of a million people without electricity for
several hours.
Imagine being without electricity during this period, when the daily
average high temperature in Ukraine in December is below freezing.
Those were not the last of the attacks against Ukraine orchestrated
by Putin.
But they were, perhaps, practice runs for what Putin had planned for
the U.S. and others.
Because true to form, Putin then targeted the U.S. electoral system
in 2016 the same way he targeted Ukraine's in 2014.
This is not in dispute--yet for whatever reason, we were ill prepared
to prevent it, and the administration has been deficient in our
response to hold this meddling accountable.
So while I fully support this measure and I urge my colleagues to do
the same, I also urge my colleagues and the administration to take
action against the totality of Russia's illicit activity aimed at us
and our like-minded allies.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the
[[Page H760]]
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1997, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the
ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a
quorum is not present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
____________________