[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 51 (Friday, March 22, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S2589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


            CENTER FOR SECURITY STUDIES IN IRREGULAR WARFARE

  Mr. KELLY. Mr. President, I would like to highlight an important 
provision, which Senator Sinema and I worked to secure within division 
A of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024. Within the 
budget for Defense-Wide Operations and Maintenance, $5 million is 
provided for the establishment of a permanent Center of Excellence for 
the John S. McCain III Center for Security Studies in Irregular 
Warfare.
  This Center, named in honor of the late Senator John McCain, would 
serve as a central hub for developing knowledge and understanding of 
irregular warfare through research, education, and external engagement 
across government, civil society, and foreign partners. Congress 
authorized the establishment of the Center in 2021.
  Both Senator Sinema and I have had regular conversations with the 
Department of Defense leadership about the need to establish a 
permanent Center of Excellence, which by law, must be located at an 
institution of higher education that has a proven course curriculum and 
existing research functions focused on irregular warfare, competition, 
and asymmetric challenges in statecraft and has an established network 
with other academic institutions to enhance such functions. We have 
been assured that, as soon as Congress provided dedicated funding to 
enable the Center of Excellence to be established, the Department would 
begin the process of selecting the site of the permanent Center of 
Excellence. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 
provides this funding.
  Therefore, we hope and expect that the Department of Defense will 
act, within the next 30 to 45 days, to begin the process of selecting a 
permanent Center of Excellence. We appreciate the attention the 
Department has paid to this important project, and look forward to 
receiving regular and positive updates as this process continues.

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