[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 199 (Tuesday, November 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8231-S8232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   National Defense Authorization Act

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, after months of delay, I am glad Senator 
Schumer has finally indicated he will allow the National Defense 
Authorization Act to come to the Senate floor this week.
  For each of the last 60 consecutive years, Congress has passed an 
NDAA to ensure that our servicemembers and military leaders had the 
resources they need to safeguard our democracy and our freedoms.
  This bill is how we maintain our military bases, modernize our force, 
and invest in the next generation of weapons that we hope we will never 
need to use but which are necessary for deterrence. It is how we 
strengthen our relationship with old allies and forge strong 
partnerships with new ones. It is how we address the global threat 
landscape and ensure our troops have the training, equipment, and the 
resources they need to counter adversaries of today and tomorrow.
  From threats by an increasingly hostile Iran to those by an 
unpredictable North Korea, there are many challenges on the horizon, 
but there is no question that the greatest threat to the world order 
and to peace itself is the People's Republic of China.
  The Chinese Communist Party has made no secret of its desire to 
continue to squash democracy, as they did in Hong Kong, and impose its 
economic, political, and military power on the rest of the world.
  Here at home, we are intensely aware of how China's aggression can 
impact our economy and supply chains for critical components of 
everything from cell phones to our fifth-generation stealth fighter, 
the F-35. Our dependency on advanced semiconductors manufactured in 
Taiwan and in Asia is a threat to America's economic and national 
security, but the most urgent and grave threats are against countries 
closer to China's borders.
  Last week, I had the chance to lead a congressional delegation 
visiting Southeast Asia to gain a better understanding of the threats 
and challenges in the region. The area spanning from Pearl Harbor all 
the way to the western border of India is the largest military theater 
in the world and is overseen by the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and is 
home to 40 percent of the world's population. My colleagues and I had 
the opportunity to hear from our military leadership and key foreign 
partners in the region and gain a better understanding of ongoing and 
anticipated security threats, mainly from China.
  China has already co-opted, as I said, a formerly democratic Hong 
Kong.
  It is building missile batteries and aircraft runways for its bombers 
on artificial islands. It threatens freedom of navigation in 
international waters. It is guilty of gross human rights abuses against 
its own people; namely, the Muslim minority Uighurs. It is engaged in a 
border war with India. And it threatens to invade the Republic of 
China, otherwise known as Taiwan.
  Here at home, there is no question that China is a looming presence, 
but it is not in our backyard. We don't see its warships on our 
coastlines, or worry about an imminent military invasion on our shores.
  But that is not the case in the Indo-Pacific. In the Philippines, we 
caught a ride on a Navy P-8 aircraft over disputed waters. Within 
minutes of leaving Philippine airspace, we spotted a Chinese spy ship 
engaged in intelligence gathering operations off the Philippine coast.
  We traveled to India, where we met with Prime Minister Modi and 
Cabinet officials to discuss threats posed by China, as well as other 
shared priorities. But one of the main topics was the timetable for a 
Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
  In every way possible, Taiwan is a stark contrast to the People's 
Republic of China. It is a true democracy, with elections whose results 
are not predetermined. It is a free-market economy that adheres to the 
rule of law. And it shares the same basic values we embrace in the 
United States: freedom of speech, freedom of press, religion, and 
assembly.
  Despite the fact that Taiwan has been a self-governing entity for 
more than 70 years, the Chinese Communist Party continues to claim the 
island nation as part of its territory. But as the Indian Minister for 
Foreign Affairs said, Taiwan isn't just a Taiwan problem; it is a China 
problem.
  In other words, what is at stake here is much larger than the future 
of one nation; it is the entire scope of Beijing's power and ambitions 
in the region. If China is able to capture Taiwan, there is no reason 
to believe that the Chinese Communist Party would stop there.
  China also has territorial claims against the Philippines, Japan, 
Vietnam, and India. We shouldn't view Taiwan as the CCP's ultimate 
goal, but as the first domino in a quest to reach regional and global 
dominance. If Taiwan falls, it will not be the end, but, rather, a 
beginning.
  As the Taiwanese Minister of Foreign Affairs told us, Taiwan is 
democracy's outpost standing watch against authoritarianism.
  I believe we have a legal and moral obligation to stand with Taiwan 
and deter China from invading. And we also have our own national 
security at stake.
  There is an old saying that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound 
of cure. In defense parlance, that means peace through strength; 
deterrence. There must be a strategy to dissuade China from an attempt 
to seize Taiwan. And there is no question that time is of the essence.
  Our delegation met with the commander of the Indo-Pacific Command, 
who described the current power dynamic rather succinctly. He said it 
is not a question of if China invades Taiwan, but when.
  According to our top military leaders, we have an idea of how long 
that might happen, because Xi Jinping himself has said he wants to be 
ready to invade by 2027.
  But we have been wrong before. I remember when people said that the 
Taliban--the intelligence community said it would take 2 years for the 
Taliban to take over Afghanistan, and we saw that happen almost in the 
blink of an eye. No one thought that country would fall to the Taliban 
before we even hit the withdrawal deadline, and we certainly did not 
expect the withdrawal in Afghanistan to turn into a rapid emergency 
evacuation mission.
  Taiwan might be safe for 6 years, but we can't operate on that 
assumption. We need to work with Taiwan and our friends and allies in 
the region to raise the costs, such that the PRC decides it is not 
worth its time and effort.
  The defense authorization bill is one critical way we can do that. It 
includes a bipartisan bill I introduced with Senator Duckworth, called 
the Taiwan Partnership Act. It would establish a partnership between 
the U.S. National Guard and Taiwanese defense forces to strengthen 
Taiwan's preparedness.
  Should troops need to deploy quickly in the event of a crisis, they 
would be armed with the same knowledge and skills as our dedicated U.S. 
National Guardsmen.
  The NDAA includes other provisions to increase defense cooperation 
with Taiwan and equip the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command with more 
resources. I appreciate my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who 
have championed these provisions.
  As I said earlier, we have a moral imperative to stand with Taiwan 
and show China that the costs of invading are far greater than the 
benefits. But we have our own national security interests at stake 
because, if the supply of semiconductors from Taiwan were cut off, it 
would be a body blow to the American economy and our national security.
  I am glad Australia has already signaled its support for Taiwan, and 
I hope more of our international partners will follow suit--
particularly the quad composed of Australia, Japan, and India and the 
United States.
  Beijing can try to exert its muscle around the world, but the United 
States has one thing that China never will have, and that is friends 
and allies.
  I am grateful to our partners in the Indo-Pacific and around the 
world who have fought and who will continue to fight to preserve 
freedom and democracy. It is an honor to spend time with them. And on 
behalf of our entire delegation, I want to thank all of our hosts for 
their hospitality.
  Our trip to the Indo-Pacific was a timely reminder of the critical 
need to invest in our national defense and support our allies, new and 
old.
  As the Senate prepares to begin consideration of the Defense 
authorization bill, I would encourage all of us to keep

[[Page S8232]]

in mind our solemn responsibility to support our national defense. That 
is our No. 1 priority. All of our other freedoms flow from our ability 
to protect and defend the American people.
  Whether our servicemembers are guarding against threats from China, 
Russia, Iran, North Korea, or terrorist groups, they need the backing 
of a strong National Defense Authorization Act to succeed.
  I appreciate the bipartisan work of the Armed Services Committee, 
chaired by Chairman Reed and Ranking Member Inhofe, and appreciate 
their hard work in getting this bill ready for our consideration. The 
committee, during its markup, adopted 143 bipartisan amendments and 
reported out the final bill by a vote of 23 to 3. You don't get much 
more bipartisan than that around here.
  This legislation has been waiting in the wings for months, and I am 
glad we can finally begin consideration of this critical legislation 
this week.
  I hope we can continue the legacy of bipartisanship that guides this 
legislation through the Senate. This debate should be about how to 
defend our national security, how to deter tyrants and bullies from 
around the world, and guarantee the blessings of liberty to all 
democracies--those that share our values.
  I yield the floor.

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