[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 115 (Thursday, July 11, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S5008]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2711. Mr. RISCH 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 of subtitle B of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1228. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS TO PROTECT AMERICANS FROM 
                   DRONE ATTACKS.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the United States condemns the January 28, 2024, drone 
     attack on Tower 22 in Jordan by Iranian-backed militias that 
     tragically took the lives of 3 American servicemembers and 
     wounded 47 others;
       (2) one-way attack drones and similar low-cost armed 
     unmanned aerial systems are the most dangerous asymmetric 
     threat employed by Iranian-aligned militias against Americans 
     and American interests;
       (3) United States defense against drones relies on a 
     patchwork of defensive systems, and the United States and 
     like-minded partners need to develop defensive systems that 
     leverage innovation and are responsive to rapidly changing 
     technology and attack methodologies;
       (4) the United States should improve cooperation with like-
     minded partners to systematically map out, expose, and 
     disrupt missile and drone procurement networks used by the 
     Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen and other Iranian proxies 
     targeting United States forces and assets and United States 
     allies and partners in the region;
       (5) the partner countries of the United States, including 
     Iraq, Jordan, and countries on the Arabian Peninsula, face 
     urgent and emerging threats from unmanned aerial systems and 
     other unmanned aerial vehicles;
       (6) joint research and development to counter unmanned 
     aerial systems will serve the national security interests of 
     the United States and its partners in Iraq, Jordan, and on 
     the Arabian Peninsula;
       (7) development of counter Unmanned Aircraft Systems 
     technology will reduce the impacts of these attacks, build 
     deterrence, and increase regional stability; and
       (8) the United States and partners in Iraq, Jordan, and on 
     the Arabian Peninsula should continue to work together to 
     protect against the threat from unmanned aerial systems.
       (b) Authority To Enter Into a Cooperative Agreement to 
     Protect Americans in Iraq, Jordan, and on the Arabian 
     Peninsula From Weaponized Unmanned Aerial Systems.--
       (1) In general.--The President is authorized to enter into 
     a cooperative project agreement with Iraq, Jordan, and 
     countries on the Arabian Peninsula under the authority of 
     section 27 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2767) to 
     carry out research on and development, testing, evaluation, 
     and joint production (including follow-on support) of defense 
     articles and defense services to detect, track, and destroy 
     armed unmanned aerial systems that threaten the United States 
     and its partners in Iraq, Jordan, and on the Arabian 
     Peninsula.
       (2) Applicable requirements.--
       (A) In general.--The cooperative project agreement 
     described in paragraph (1)--
       (i) shall provide that any activities carried out pursuant 
     to such agreement are subject to--

       (I) the applicable requirements described in subparagraphs 
     (A), (B), and (C) of section 27(b)(2) of the Arms Export 
     Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2767(b)(2)); and
       (II) any other applicable requirements of the Arms Export 
     Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.) with respect to the use, 
     transfer, and security of such defense articles and defense 
     services under such Act;

       (ii) shall establish a framework to negotiate the rights to 
     intellectual property developed under such agreement; and
       (iii) shall be defensive in nature.
       (B) Congressional notification requirements.--
     Notwithstanding section 27(g) of the Arms Export Control Act 
     (22 U.S.C. 2767(g)), any defense articles that result from a 
     cooperative project agreement shall be subject to the 
     requirements under subsections (b) and (c) of section 36 of 
     such Act (22 U.S.C. 2776).
       (c) Rule of Construction With Respect to Use of Military 
     Force.--Nothing in this section may be construed as an 
     authorization for the use of military force.
       (d) Arabian Peninsula Defined.--In this section, the term 
     ``Arabian Peninsula'' means Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, 
     Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
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