[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 186 (Thursday, December 1, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6936-S6937]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ARMS SALES NOTIFICATION
Mr. MENENDEZ. Madam 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,
Washington, DC.
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)(l) of the Arms Export Control Act, as
amended, we are forwarding herewith Transmittal No. 22-64,
concerning the Navy's proposed Letter(s) of Offer and
Acceptance to the Government of Finland for defense articles
and services estimated to cost $323.3 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,
J. Aaron Harding
(For James A. Hursch, Director).
Enclosures.
Transmittal No. 22-64
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: Government of Finland.
(ii) Total Estimated Value:
Major Defense Equipment* $164.1 million.
Other $159.2 million.
Total $323.3 million.
(iii) Description and Quantity or Quantities of Articles or
Services under Consideration for Purchase:
Major Defense Equipment (MDE):
Forty (40) AIM 9X Block II Tactical Missiles.
Four (4) AIM 9X Block II Tactical Guidance Units.
Forty-eight (48) AGM-154 Joint Stand Off Weapons (JSOW).
Non-MDE: Also included are Dummy Air Training Missiles
(DATM); Captive Air Training Missile (CATM); Captive Flight
Vehicles (CFVs); Free Flight Vehicles (FFVs); containers;
mission planning; integration support and testing; munitions
storage security and training; weapon operational flight
program software development; transportation; tools and test
equipment; support equipment; spare and repair parts;
publications and technical documentation; personnel training
and training equipment; U.S. Government and contractor
engineering and logistics support services; books and other
publications; training; training aids and devices; space
parts; support equipment; weapon system software support;
U.S. Government and contractor engineering; technical and
logistics support services; studies and surveys; missile
technical assistance; other technical assistance; and other
related elements of program and logistics support.
(iv) Military Department: Navy (FI-P-AAT, FI-P-AAU).
(v) Prior Related Cases, if any: FI-P-AAS, FI-P-AAI, FI-P-
GAT, FI-P-LDB, FI-P-LBM.
(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: November 28,
2022.
*As defined in Section 47 (6) of the Arms Export Control
Act.
POLICY JUSTIFICATION
Finland--AIM 9X Block II Tactical Missiles and AGM-154 Joint Standoff
Weapons
The Government of Finland has requested to buy forty (40)
AIM 9X Block II tactical missiles; four (4) AIM 9X Block II
tactical guidance units; and forty-eight (48) AGM-154 Joint
Stand Off Weapons (JSOW). Also included are Dummy Air
Training Missiles (DATM); Captive Air Training Missile
(CATM); Captive Flight Vehicles (CFVs); Free Flight Vehicles
(FFVs); containers; mission planning; integration support and
testing; munitions storage security and training; weapon
operational flight program software development;
transportation; tools and test equipment; support equipment;
spare and repair parts; publications and technical
documentation; personnel training and training equipment;
U.S. Government and contractor engineering and logistics
support services; books and other publications; training;
training aids and devices; space parts; support equipment;
weapon system software support; U.S. Government and
contractor engineering; technical and logistics support
services; studies and surveys; missile technical assistance;
other technical assistance; and other related elements of
program and logistics support. The total estimated cost is
$323.3 million.
This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and
national security of the United States by improving the
security of a trusted partner, which is an important force
for political stability and economic progress in Europe. It
is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist Finland in
developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense
capability.
The proposed sale will improve Finland's air-to-air and
air-to-surface weapons capabilities and will positively
impact U.S. relations with countries in the Nordic region.
Finland intends to use these defense articles and services
for its fighter aircraft fleet. Finland will have no
difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces.
The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not
alter the basic military balance in the region.
The principal contractors will be Raytheon Missiles and
Defense, Tucson, AZ. There are no known offset agreements
proposed in connection with this potential sale.
[[Page S6937]]
Implementation of the proposed sale will require U.S.
Government and contractor representatives to visit Finland on
a temporary basis in conjunction with program technical
oversight and support requirements, including program and
technical reviews.
There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness
as a result of this proposed sale.
Transmittal No. 22-64
Notice of Proposed Issuance of Letter of Offer Pursuant to
Section 36(b)(l) of the Arms Export Control Act
Annex Item No. vii
(vii) Sensitivity of Technology:
1. The AIM 9X Block II Tactical Missile is a datalink-
enabled, launch and leave, air combat munition that uses
passive Infrared (IR) energy to acquire and track enemy air
targets. The AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder continues the
evolution of the AIM-9 series of missiles.
2. The AGM-154 JSOW is a precision strike weapon with a
500-pound blast/fragmentation/penetrator warhead effective
against fixed-point targets. It includes GPS/INS guidance,
and an uncooled, long-wave imaging infrared seeker with
autonomous target acquisition algorithms for precise
targeting.
3. The highest level of classification of defense articles,
components, and services included in this potential sale is
SECRET.
4. 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.
5. A determination has been made that Finland 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.
6. All defense articles and services listed in this
transmittal have been authorized for release and export to
the Government of Finland.
____________________