[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 158 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6489-S6490]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ARMS SALES NOTIFICATION
Mr. MENENDEZ. 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. Robert Menendez,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC
Dear Mr. Chairman: Pursuant to the reporting requirements
of Section 36(b)(5)(C) of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA),
as
[[Page S6490]]
amended, we are forwarding Transmittal No. 21-0J. This
notification relates to enhancements or upgrades from the
level of sensitivity of technology or capability described in
the Section 36(b)(l) AECA certification 13-40 of June 27,
2013.
Sincerely,
Heidi H. Grant,
Director.
Enclosures.
Transmittal No. 21-0J
Report of Enhancement or Upgrade of Sensitivity of Technology
or Capability (Sec. 36(B)(5)(C)), (AECA)
(i) Purchaser: Government of France.
(ii) Sec. 36(b)(1), AECA Transmittal No.: 13-40; Date: June
27, 2013; Military Department: Air Force.
(iii) Description: On June 27, 2013, Congress was notified
by Congressional certification transmittal number 13-40 of
the possible sale, under Section 36(b)(1) of the Arms Export
Control Act, of sixteen (16) MQ-9 Reaper Remotely Piloted
Aircraft; eight (8) Mobile Ground Control Stations; forty-
eight (48) Honeywell TPE331-10T Turboprop Engines (16
installed and 32 Spares); twenty-four (24) Satellite Earth
Terminal Substations; forty (40) Ku Band Link-Airborne
Communication Systems; forty (40) General Atomics Lynx
(exportable) Synthetic Aperture Radar/Ground Moving Target
Indicator (SAR/GMTI) Systems; forty (40) AN/DAS-1 Multi-
Spectral Targeting System (MTS)-B; forty (40) Ground Data
Terminals; forty (40) ARC-210 Radio Systems; forty (40)
Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation
Systems; and forty-eight (48) AN/APX-119 and KIV-119 Identify
Friend or Foe (IFF) Systems. Also included were spare and
repair parts; communication, test, and support equipment;
publications and technical documentation; airworthiness and
maintenance support; site surveys and bed down planning;
personnel training and training equipment; operational flight
test; U.S. Government and contractor technical and logistics
personnel services; and other related elements of logistics
support. The estimated cost was $1.5 billion. Major Defense
Equipment (MDE) constituted $765 million of this total.
On July 26, 2018, Congress was notified by Congressional
certification transmittal number 18-0B of the retrofit of MQ-
9s to become weapons capable, and the inclusion of one
hundred (100) GBU-49 Enhanced Paveway dual mode GPS and laser
guided bomb kits comprised of MXU-650 Air Foil Group (AFG)
and MAU-210 Enhanced Computer Control Group (ECCG); two
hundred (200) FMU-152 fuzes; six hundred fifty (650) AGM-114R
Hellfire missiles, with active warheads; forty-five (45) AGM-
114R Hellfire training missiles, without active warheads; and
six (6) Hellfire Captive Air Training Missiles. The retrofit
and inclusion of MDE not enumerated in the original
notification resulted in the total notified cost of MDE
increasing to $975 million. The total notified case value
increased to $1.71 billion.
On November 22, 2019, Congress was notified by
Congressional certification transmittal number 19-0P of the
retrofit of four (4) MQ-9A Block 1 to exportable MQ-9A Block
5; the addition of four (4) MQ-9A Block 5; and the addition
of fourteen (14) Embedded GPS/INS (EGI) with GPS Security
Devices. The retrofit and inclusion of MDE not enumerated in
the original notification resulted in the total notified cost
of MDE increasing to $1.055 billion. The total notified case
value remained $1.71 billion.
This transmittal reports the addition of up to five (5)
Mobile Ground Control Stations (MDE). Also included are
additional ARC-210 Radios Systems (non-MDE). The inclusion of
MDE not enumerated in the original notification will result
in the total notified cost of MDE increasing to $1.0875
billion. The total notified case value will remain at $1.71
billion.
(iv) Significance: This notification is being provided to
report the inclusion of MDE and non-MDE articles and services
not previously notified. Their inclusion represents an
increase in capability over what was originally notified. The
proposed articles and services will provide France's MQ-9
program with the equipment necessary to support capabilities
that France is already employing.
(v) Justification: This proposed sale will support the
foreign policy and national security of the United States by
helping to improve the security of a NATO ally which is an
important force for political stability and economic progress
in Europe.
(vi) Sensitivity of Technology: The MQ-9A Mobile Ground
Control Station (MGCS) enables a pilot to operate, in real-
time, a long-endurance, medium altitude Remotely Piloted
Aircraft (RPA) that can be used for surveillance, military
reconnaissance, and targeting missions. A data link is
maintained that uplink commands and downlink video with
telemetry data. The data link can be a Line-of-Sight (LOS) C-
Band communication or Beyond Line-of-Sight (BLOS) Ku-Band
Satellite Communication (SATCOM). Aircraft can be handed off
to other strategically placed ground control stations.
The highest level of classification of defense articles,
components, and services included in this potential sale is
UNCLASSIFIED.
(vii) Date Report Delivered to Congress: August 4, 2021
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