[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 115 (Thursday, July 11, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4840-S4841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2514. Mr. RUBIO submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2025 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the end, add the following:

     DIVISION E--UNITED STATES-PHILIPPINES PARTNERSHIP ACT OF 2024

     SEC. 5001. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This division may be cited as the 
     ``United States-Philippines Partnership Act of 2024''.

                      TITLE LI--ECONOMIC MEASURES

     SEC. 5101. DEFINITIONS.

       In this title:
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on 
     Finance, and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
     the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Ways 
     and Means, and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
     House of Representatives.
       (2) Critical mineral.--The term ``critical mineral'' has 
     the meaning given that term in section 7002(a) of the Energy 
     Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C. 1606(a)).
       (3) Foreign entity of concern.--The term ``foreign entity 
     of concern'' means an entity organized under the laws of or 
     otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of--
       (A) the People's Republic of China;
       (B) the Russian Federation;
       (C) the Islamic Republic of Iran; or
       (D) the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

     SEC. 5102. NEGOTIATION OF CRITICAL MINERALS AGREEMENT WITH 
                   THE PHILIPPINES.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall seek 
     to enter into negotiations with the Philippines for an 
     executive agreement relating to critical minerals that--
       (1) requires that duties not be imposed on the export of on 
     critical minerals;
       (2) provides for domestic measures to address nonmarket 
     polices and practices of other countries affecting trade in 
     critical minerals;
       (3) implements best practices for reviewing investments 
     within the critical mineral sector of the Philippines by 
     foreign entities of concern;
       (4) promotes more efficient methods of extraction of 
     critical minerals that reduces the demand for the extractions 
     of virgin materials;
       (5) establishes engagement, information-sharing, and 
     enforcement processes to address concerns relating to the use 
     of forced labor in the critical mineral industry; and
       (6) promotes the neutrality of employers in the 
     organization and operations of labor organizations.
       (b) Briefings Required.--Not later than 1 year after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days 
     thereafter until an agreement described in subsection (a) 
     enters into force, the Secretary of State, the United States 
     Trade Representative, and the heads of other relevant Federal 
     agencies, shall brief the appropriate congressional 
     committees on progress in negotiating such an agreement.

     SEC. 5103. PRIORITIZATION OF SUPPORT BY UNITED STATES 
                   INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CORPORATION 
                   FOR PROJECTS IN THE PHILIPPINES IN CRITICAL 
                   MINERALS AND FOSSIL FUELS.

       (a) In General.--In providing support under title II of the 
     Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act 
     of 2018 (22 U.S.C. 9621 et seq.), the United States 
     International Development Finance Corporation (in this 
     section referred to as the ``Corporation'') shall prioritize 
     the provision of support to projects in the Philippines in 
     sectors the Government of the Philippines is seeking to 
     develop, including the mining of critical minerals and fossil 
     fuels.
       (b) Report Required.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter until 
     the date that is 5 years after such date of enactment, the 
     Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation shall submit to 
     the appropriate congressional committees a report that--
       (1) lists all the critical mineral and fossil fuel projects 
     in the Philippines for which the Corporation provided support 
     in the one-year period preceding submission of the report;
       (2) lists all the applications for support for such 
     projects that the Corporation rejected; and
       (3) provides a justification for rejecting such 
     applications.

     SEC. 5104. INTERAGENCY PLAN FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT IN 
                   THE PHILIPPINES TO SUPPORT MILITARY AND 
                   DISASTER RECOVERY OPERATIONS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall--
       (1) lead an interagency effort to assess investments of the 
     United States in the Philippines; and
       (2) develop a plan for how such investments can better 
     enable efficient transportation during a conflict or other 
     emergency scenario.
       (b) Identification of Infrastructure Requiring Additional 
     Investment.--The plan required by subsection (a)(2) shall--
       (1) identify--
       (A) infrastructure in the Philippines that the Secretary 
     determines is insufficient to support military and disaster 
     recovery operations; and
       (B) any asset that would assist the military of the 
     Philippines in the event of an attack on the Philippines; and
       (2) assess whether any of such assets require additional 
     investment by the United States to assist the military of the 
     Philippines in the event of an attack.
       (c) Identification of Additional United States Agencies to 
     Make Investments.--The plan required by subsection (a)(2) 
     shall identify United States Government agencies, such as the 
     Office of Strategic Capital of the Department of Defense, 
     that--
       (1) are not involved, as of the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, in infrastructure investment in the Philippines; 
     and
       (2) could make investments that could assist the Government 
     of the Philippines respond to an attack on the Philippines.

                     TITLE LII--DIPLOMATIC MEASURES

     SEC. 5201. STATEMENT OF POLICY REGARDING CHINA'S ILLEGAL, 
                   COERCIVE, AGGRESSIVE, AND DECEPTIVE TACTICS IN 
                   THE SOUTH CHINA SEA.

       (a) In General.--It is the policy of the United States that 
     the actions of the People's Republic of China in the South 
     China Sea constitute illegal, coercive, aggressive, and 
     deceptive (ICAD) tactics.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the United States Government should describe actions of the 
     People's Republic of China in the South China Sea as ICAD 
     tactics and that doing so would help the diplomatic efforts 
     of the Government of the Philippines.

     SEC. 5202. MULTILATERAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES, 
                   THE PHILIPPINES, THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, AND 
                   JAPAN.

       There is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for the 
     Department of State and the United States Agency for 
     International Development for fiscal year 2025 to support 
     activities related to entering into and implementing a 
     multilateral agreement with the Philippines, the Republic of 
     Korea, and Japan for purposes of responding to actions of the 
     People's Republic of China in the South China Sea.

                     TITLE LIII--MILITARY MEASURES

     SEC. 5301. UNITED STATES-PHILIPPINES SECURITY CONSULTATIVE 
                   COMMITTEE.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State and the 
     Secretary of Defense shall establish a consultative committee 
     (to be known as the ``United States-Philippines Security 
     Consultative Committee'') to include the Minister of Foreign 
     Affairs and the Minister of Defense of the Philippines in the 
     development of a strategy for jointly strengthening the 
     national security and defense institutions of the Philippines 
     and the capacity of such institutions to carry out operations 
     across the Philippines (including inland and maritime areas) 
     relating to--
       (1) counterterrorism and counterinsurgency;
       (2) counternarcotics and countering other forms of illicit 
     trafficking;

[[Page S4841]]

       (3) cyber defense and prevention of cyber crimes; and
       (4) border and maritime security and air defense.
       (b) Additional Elements.--The United States-Philippines 
     Security Consultative Committee shall evaluate--
       (1) existing technologies, equipment, and weapons systems 
     of the national security and defense institutions of the 
     Philippines; and
       (2) the upgrades to such technologies, equipment, and 
     systems necessary to ensure the continued defense of the 
     national sovereignty and national territory of the 
     Philippines.
       (c) Bilateral Security and Defense Cooperation.--Not later 
     than 180 days after the establishment of the United States-
     Philippines Security Consultative Committee, the Secretary of 
     State, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, may 
     enter into consultations with the Government of Philippines 
     to strengthen existing, or establish new, bilateral security 
     and defense cooperation agreements or lines of effort to 
     address capacity-building and resource needs identified by 
     the consultative committee.
       (d) Briefings.--
       (1) Consultative committee.--Not later than 30 days after 
     the date on which the United States-Philippines Security 
     Consultative Committee is established, and not later than 15 
     days after any meeting of the United States-Philippines 
     Security Consultative Committee thereafter, the Secretary of 
     State and the Secretary of Defense shall, on request by any 
     of the appropriate committees of Congress, jointly brief the 
     appropriate committees of Congress on progress made by the 
     consultative committee.
       (2) Bilateral security and defense cooperation.--Not later 
     than 30 days after the completion of any consultation with 
     the Government of Philippines under subsection (c), the 
     Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense shall brief 
     the appropriate committees of Congress on the implementation 
     of agreed upon areas of cooperation or lines of effort.
       (3) Appropriate committees of congress defined.--In this 
     subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress'' 
     means--
       (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     Armed Services of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
     Armed Services of the House of Representatives.

     SEC. 5302. REPORT ON DOMAIN AWARENESS GAPS OF THE 
                   PHILIPPINES.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a 
     report on gaps in the domain awareness of the Philippines 
     that may be filled by broader Department of Defense 
     resourcing of new capabilities.

     SEC. 5303. ASSESSMENT OF AND REPORT ON IMPROVEMENTS IN SECOND 
                   THOMAS SHOAL REGION OF THE PHILIPPINES.

       (a) Assessment.--The Secretary of Defense shall assess the 
     feasibility of improving the force posture of the United 
     States Armed Forces capable of deterring, in cooperation with 
     the military forces of the Philippines, hostile acts against 
     the Philippines with respect to the Second Thomas Shoal, 
     including an assessment of potential funding sources to 
     execute the planning for and design of improvements to the 
     position of the BRP Sierra Madre. The Secretary shall carry 
     out such assessment not later than 180 days after enactment 
     of this Act, and produce a report to Congress on joint 
     efforts between the Department of Defense and the Philippines 
     to harden positions near the Second Thomas Shoal.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit 
     to the Congress a report on the assessment carried out under 
     subsection (a) and joint efforts between the Department of 
     Defense and the Philippines to harden positions near the 
     Second Thomas Shoal.
                                 ______