[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 142 (Monday, August 10, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5376-S5377]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        ARMS SALES NOTIFICATION

  Mr. RISCH. Mr. President, section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control 
Act requires that Congress receive prior notification of certain 
proposed arms sales as defined by that statute. Upon such notification, 
the Congress has 30 calendar days during which the sale may be 
reviewed. The provision stipulates that, in the Senate, the 
notification of proposed sales shall be sent to the chairman of the 
Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
  In keeping with the committee's intention to see that relevant 
information is available to the full Senate, I ask unanimous consent to 
have printed in the Record the notifications which have been received. 
If the cover letter references a classified annex, then such annex is 
available to all Senators in the office of the Foreign Relations 
Committee, room SD-423.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                  Defense Security


                                           Cooperation Agency,

                                                    Arlington, VA.
     Hon. James E. Risch,
     Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations,
      U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Pursuant to the reporting requirements 
     of Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, as 
     amended. we are forwarding herewith Transmittal No. 20-38 
     concerning the Navy's proposed Letter(s) of Offer and 
     Acceptance to the Republic of the Philippines for defense 
     articles and services estimated to cost $126 million. After 
     this letter is delivered to your office, we plan to issue a 
     news release to notify the public of this proposed sale.
           Sincerely,
                                                Charles W. Hooper,
                                Lieutenant General, USA, Director.
       Enclosures.


                         Transmittal No. 20-38

     Notice of Proposed Issuance of Letter of Offer Pursuant to 
         Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, as 
         amended
       (i) Prospective Purchaser: Republic of the Philippines
       (ii) Total Estimated Value:
       Major Defense Equipment * $2 million.
       Other $124 million.
       Total $126 million.
       (iii) Description and Quantity or Quantities of Articles or 
     Services under Consideration for Purchase:
       Major Defense Equipment (MDE):
       One hundred fifty-six (156) M240B 7.62x5lmm Machine Guns
       Non-MDE: Also included are thirty-six (36) 9M Scout Boats 
     (SB); thirty-six (36) 1OM Assault Boats (AB); eighteen (18) 
     16M Light Support Boats (LSB); thirty-six (36) units of 
     Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) 280HD; twenty-four (24) M2A1 
     .50 caliber machine guns; thirty-six (36) Ml34D-M, 7.62x51mm, 
     6-

[[Page S5377]]

     barrel rotary Gatling guns; three hundred ninety-nine (399) 
     NFS-NVG/IR Lasers (AN/PVS-14 and AN/PEQ-15); one hundred two 
     (102) Thermal Imager Scope (handheld); two hundred ten (210) 
     Heavy Thermal Weapon Sights (AN/PAS-13); ninety (90) Harris 
     Falcon III RF-7850M radios; two hundred seventy (270) Harris 
     Falcon III RF-7850S radios; boat spare parts; spare engines 
     and engine components; safety and rescue equipment; training; 
     contractor engineering technical services; engineering 
     technical assistance; transportation cost services, and other 
     related elements of logistics and program support.
       (iv) Military Department: Navy (PI-P-SCS)
       (v) Prior Related Cases, if any: 7L-P-LBJ
       (vi) Sales Commission, Fee, etc., Paid, Offered, or Agreed 
     to be Paid: None.
       (vii) Sensitivity of Technology Contained in the Defense 
     Article or Defense Services Proposed to be Sold: See Attached 
     Annex.
       (viii) Date Report Delivered to Congress: July 30, 2020.
       *As defined in Section 47(6) of the Arms Export Control 
     Act.


                          POLICY JUSTIFICATION

Philippines--Scout, Assault, and Light Support Boats with Armaments and 
                              Accessories

       The Government of the Philippines has requested to buy one 
     hundred fifty-six (l56) M240B 7.62x51mm machine guns. Also 
     included are thirty-six (36) 9M Scout Boats (SB); thirty-six 
     (36) 10M Assault Boats (AB); eighteen (18) 16M Light Support 
     Boats (LSB); thirty-six (36) units of Forward Looking 
     Infrared (FLIR) 280HD; twenty-four (24) M2A1 .50 caliber 
     machine guns; thirty-six (36) M134D-M, 7.62x51mm, 6-barrel 
     rotary Gatling guns; three hundred ninety-nine (399) NFS-NVG/
     IR Lasers (AN/PVS-14 and AN/PEQ-15); one hundred two (102) 
     Thermal Imager Scope (handheld); two hundred ten (210) Heavy 
     Thermal Weapon Sights (AN/PAS-13); ninety (90) Harris Falcon 
     III RF-7850M radios; two hundred seventy (270) Harris Falcon 
     III RF-7850S radios; boat spare parts; spare engines and 
     engine components; safety and rescue equipment; training; 
     contractor engineering technical services; engineering 
     technical assistance; transportation cost services, and other 
     related elements of logistics and program support. The 
     estimated cost is $126 million.
       This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and 
     national security of the United States by helping to improve 
     the security of a strategic partner that continues to be an 
     important force for political stability, peace, and economic 
     progress in South-East Asia.
       The proposed sale will improve the Philippines' capability 
     to meet current and future threats by force multiplying the 
     Army's present ability to operate and control both inland and 
     coastal waterways of southern Philippines. The Philippines 
     will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment and support 
     into its armed forces.
       The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not 
     alter the basic military balance in the region.
       The principal contractor for the Scout and Assault Boats 
     will be Willard Marine Inc., Anaheim, CA. The principal 
     contractor for the Light Support Boat will be determined 
     through an open competition contract. There are no known 
     offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential 
     sale. Any offset agreement required by Philippines will be 
     defined in negotiations between the purchaser and the 
     contractor(s).
       Implementation of this proposed sale will require the 
     assignment of one (1) additional U.S. contractor 
     representative to the Republic of the Philippines for a 
     duration of five (5) years to provide maintenance and 
     logistical support.
       There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness 
     as a result of this proposed sale.


                         Transmittal No. 20-38

     Notice of Proposed Issuance of Letter of Offer Pursuant to 
         Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act

                           Annex Item No. vii

       (vii) Sensitivity of Technology:
       1. Included are:
       a. The M240B 7.62x51mm machine gun is a general purpose, 
     gas-operated, medium machine gun fired from a mount. The 
     M240B machine gun provides protection and is used extensively 
     by infantry, most often in rifle companies, as well as on 
     ground vehicles, watercraft and aircraft.
       b. The 9M Scout Boat is an agile vessel. The 9M Scout Boat 
     provides reconnaissance capabilities.
       c. The 10M Assault Boat is a high speed patrol vessel. The 
     10M Assault Boat provides search and seizure capabilities.
       d. The 16M Light Support Boat is a lightweight unit support 
     vessel. The 16M Light Support Boat provides extended range 
     for the mission.
       e. The Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) 280HD is an imaging 
     system. The FLIR 280HD is designed to identify and track 
     threats in the day and night.
       f. The M2A1 .50 caliber machine gun is an automatic, air-
     cooled machine gun either mounted or crew transported (over 
     short distances). The M2A1 .50 caliber machine gun provides 
     defensive and offensive capabilities and can be used as an 
     anti-personnel and anti-aircraft weapon.
       g. The M134D-M, 7.62x51mm, 6-barrel rotary Gatling gun, is 
     a machine gun. The M134D-M, 7.62x51mm, 6-barrel rotary 
     Gatling guns provides defensive and offensive capabilities.
       h. The Night Fighting System-Night Vision Goggle (NFS-NVG)/
     Infrared Lasers (AN/PVS-14 and AN/PEQ-15). The NFS/NVG (AN/
     PVS-14) is a multi-functional night vision monocular. The 
     NFS/NVG provides night vision capabilities and can be used as 
     a hand-held pocket scope, helmet-mounted monocular, or a 
     weapon sight when mounted in tandem with an infrared laser 
     aimer. The Advanced Target Pointer/Illuminator/Aiming Laser 
     (AN/PEQ-15) is an infrared laser aimer. The Advanced Target 
     Pointer/Illuminator/Aiming Laser (AN/PEQ-15) provides direct-
     fire aiming and illumination for nighttime use.
       i. The Thermal Imager Scope is a device which creates an 
     image by the target's emitted heat signature and its contrast 
     to its immediate surroundings. The Thermal Imager Scope 
     provides a sharper capability for precision targeting in the 
     absence of illumination.
       j. The Heavy Thermal Weapon Sights (AN/PAS-13) is a 
     portable infrared sensor for use on rifles, surveillance 
     missions, and shoulder-launched missiles. The Thermal Weapon 
     Sight provides a capability to acquire targets at long range, 
     night, during the day in adverse weather conditions and 
     through smoke and dust.
       k. The Harris Falcon III RF-7850M Radio is a multiband 
     networking vehicular radio. The Harris Falcon III RF-7850M 
     Radio provides high-speed, long-range tactical communications 
     and is engineered for space-constrained platforms.
       l. The Harris Falcon III RF-7850S Radio is an advanced 
     wideband, secure personal radio. The Harris Falcon III RF-
     7850S Radio provides personal, secure and full communications 
     capabilities (for both wideband and narrowband operation) and 
     meets specific needs of soldier-level communications with 
     multiple talk groups, ad-hoc mesh networking, and multihop 
     forwarding.
       2. The highest level of classification of defense articles, 
     components, and services included in this potential sale is 
     UNCLASSIFIED.
       3. If a technologically advanced adversary were to obtain 
     knowledge of the specific hardware and software elements, the 
     information could be used to develop countermeasures that 
     might reduce weapon system effectiveness or be used in the 
     development of a system with similar or advanced 
     capabilities.
       4. A determination has been made that the Republic of the 
     Philippines can provide substantially the same degree of 
     protection for the sensitive technology being released as the 
     U.S. Government. This sale is necessary in furtherance of the 
     U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives outlined 
     in the Policy Justification.
       5. All defense articles and services listed in this 
     transmittal have been authorized for release and export to 
     the Republic of the Philippines.

                          ____________________