[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 15829-15832]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



              ASIAN PACIFIC CHARTER COMMISSION, H.R. 4899

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 20, 2000

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing H.R. 4899, 
legislation to establish a commission to promote a coordinated foreign 
policy of the United States to ensure economic and military security in 
the Pacific region of Asia through the promotion of democracy, human 
rights, the rule of law, free trade, and open markets, and for other 
purposes.
  Asia is a region vital to the future of our nation. Over the past 50 
years, Asia has become a significant center of international economic 
and military power. Our nation has sacrificed the blood of our sons and 
daughters on Asian soil in defense of our national shores. America has 
fought three wars in Asia since 1941 and

[[Page 15830]]

American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines are engaged in ensuring 
peace across the Pacific. Our basic interests in Asia have remained 
virtually the same for the past 200 years: fostering democracy, human 
rights and the rule of law.
  Shortly after World War II, the reknowned American soldier and 
statesman George C. Marshall said that a safe and free America depends 
on a safe and free Europe. Marshall, of course, was emphasizing the 
importance of Europe to our nation at the time. Permit me to suggest 
that Marshall's paradigm has now changed. Today, he could have stated 
that a safe and free America depends on a safe, democratic, and free 
Asia.
  Just as we could not take Europe for granted during the Cold War, we 
must not take Asia for granted as we enter the 21st century. It is 
incumbent upon us as a global leader to provide the leadership that 
will both protect our interests in this vital region of the world and, 
at the same time, keep the peace. However, our leadership role in Asia 
is being questioned. Some Asians perceive the American approach to 
foreign policy as marked by uncertainty, questioning our sincerity and 
commitment to the region. Militarily, they have watched as American 
troop strength declined from 135,000 in 1990 to 85,000 in 1996. They 
were concerned with the closing of our strategic bases in the 
Philippines in 1992. There has been a mixed message of sacrifice of 
security and human rights issues to commercial engagement.
  The democratic election which brought an opposition leader peacefully 
to power in Taipei this spring was welcomed by democratic nations 
around the world. It is such an orderly, democratic change which the 
Asian Pacific Charter Commission is designed to nurture.
  Asia is a region not only of great diversity--ethnic, religious, 
cultural, linguistic--but also of historic rivalries--ancient in their 
origins but no less severe today. Such rivalries can become serious 
threats to Asian stability. Potential flashpoints range from the 38th 
parallel on the Korean peninsula to the Taiwan Strait to the Spratly 
Islands in the South China Sea to Kashmir on the Indian subcontinent. 
Weapons proliferation and regional arms races that are fueled by 
territorial, maritime, and ethnic disputes only add to the possibility 
of a major conflagration.
  U.S. leadership is continually being challenged to maintain and 
advance our national interests amid these relationships. Further 
challenges to U.S. interests include access to markets that are 
obstructed by trade barriers, violations of intellectual property 
rights, and other trade-related issues. Nor can we ignore the growth of 
transnational criminal activities that range from the threat to 
America's youth from narcotics produced in the Golden Triangle to the 
smuggling of illegal aliens onto our shores.
  The most significant challenge to peace and prosperity in Asia is the 
rise of a regional hegemon. The People's Republic of China is the most 
likely candidate in that role. China is already an economic power and 
is seeking to become an Asian military power as well. In the absence of 
any countervailing presence, Asia could find itself within the Chinese 
sphere of influence in the not-too-distant future. Writing in the 
January 20th issue of The Weekly Standard, Robert Kagan, the Alexander 
Hamilton Fellow in History at the American University, states that 
``There is a Marxian foolishness to the argument that the 
transformation of China into a liberal democracy is historically 
inevitable.'' Kagan goes on to state that ``The iron laws of 
modernization can be broken by a ruling elite that is ultimately more 
interested in power than modernization.'' The Chinese nation rightfully 
seeks a level of respect commensurate with its newly acquired economic 
might. The question is, what does the unelected government in Beijing 
seek? And are those goals commensurate with a region that is 
increasingly characterized by democratic societies with free-market 
economies, such as those we now see in much of Europe and Latin 
America?
  Much of Asia is looking to the United States for answers to these and 
other important questions regarding the future of the region. If the 
answers do not come from Washington, be assured they will come from 
elsewhere, and they may not be to our liking. Resolving these 
challenges requires a continued and significant American presence in 
the region. The wind favors a ship whose course is marked. In the years 
following World War II, America was the indispensable leader and 
peacekeeper of the Pacific. But America's position is now being 
challenged. The political, economic, and security challenges which our 
nation faces require principled and consistent leadership from 
Washington. The wind favors our ship of state, but only if our course, 
or strategy, has been clearly set.
  We need a new national policy toward Asia--one which addresses in a 
forthright manner both the opportunities and challenges presented by a 
continent in flux. The opportunities for a further commercial 
partnership with a continent which has made significant headway in 
recovering from economic crisis is obvious to all. Less clear, though, 
is how we can finesse such critical national security concerns as 
easing cross-strait tensions between China and Taiwan, monitoring 
developments on the still volatile Korean peninsula, and reducing the 
threat posed by nuclear proliferation on the Indian subcontinent. It is 
there that this Asian Pacific Charter Commission can play a 
constructive role.
  In 1941, the United States and Great Britain laid down a set of 
principles of conduct. It was called the Atlantic Charter. Similarly, I 
propose that we establish an Asian Pacific Charter Commission that 
would assist our government in laying out the principles for our 
policies in Asia in the 21st century. Such an Asian Pacific Charter 
articulates America's long-term goals and objectives in the Pacific and 
link them with the means for implementation. It is a comprehensive 
model for our involvement in the region, supporting our national 
interests and assuring others of our intention to remain a Pacific 
power. Furthermore, it demonstrates that the United States is placing 
its relations with Asia in the 21st century on a par comparable to that 
which has formed our relations with Europe over the latter half of the 
20th century.
  The principles of an Asian Pacific Charter provides for effective 
security; prevention of regional hegemony by one nation; promotion of 
democracy and the rule of law; respect for human and religious rights; 
and expansion of trade on a reciprocal basis.
  Such a charter would strengthen security arrangements by providing a 
basis for a long-term U.S. presence through basing and access 
agreements, for regional security agreements, and for an American 
presence following the reunification of the Korean peninsula. It could 
provide the basis for the continuation of a credible forward presence 
of U.S. forces to deter aggression, help resolve crises, and protect 
and defend our interests as well as those of our allies and trading 
partners.
  Too often, we have viewed Russia as being part of Europe. Yet, with 
nearly 2,800 miles of coastline. Russia is very much a Pacific nation. 
After Canada and Mexico, it is our next-closest neighbor, just 68 miles 
across the Bering Strait from Alaska.
  An Asian Pacific Charter would also provide a basis for Japan to 
participate more fully in regional security arrangements, as well as 
for exploring new cooperative approaches that foster security in the 
entire region. As Mike Mansfield, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, has 
stated, the U.S.-Japan relationship is--in his words--the ``single most 
important bilateral relationship, bar none.'' The security environment 
in Asia in the 21st century will be shaped largely by our relationship 
with Japan. Our relationship is strong today. We must make certain that 
it remains so.
  Another great democracy of Asia that we have too long neglected is 
India, which, like many nations in the region, is undergoing a dramatic 
economic change as it embraces a market economy. Although located in 
the heart of an area largely characterized by national political 
institutions that are authoritarian or totalitarian, India adheres 
courageously to the same core values that we also hold so dear. The 
United States needs to reach out to India beyond our friendship and 
mutual respect and become close partners in a struggle that assures 
that Asia's security, economic growth, and market economies are 
protected by the rule of law and democratic institutions. An Asian 
Pacific Charter could provide a framework for advancing such ties.
  Francine Frankel, Professor of Political Science and Director of the 
Center for the Advanced Study of India at the University of 
Pennsylvania, writing in the Autumn 1996 issue of The Washington 
Quarterly, states that the new global context gives reason for both 
countries to want better ties. U.S. and Indian policymakers have 
converging geopolitical interests in establishing a rough equilibrium 
in Asia, particularly as China's military modernization increasingly 
threatens neighboring countries, including those in Southeast Asia, in 
the coming century. India's democratic institutions, advanced 
educational system, and millions of highly educated citizens could form 
an important hub in a new Asia--an Asia that supports economic growth 
but allows for the rights of workers to be protected; an Asia that 
supports development but permits nongovernmental advocacy groups to 
speak out against exploitation of the environment; and an Asia that 
integrates traditional values with a deep regard for the rule of law 
and human and religious rights.

[[Page 15831]]

  An Asian Pacific Charter could invigorate U.S. efforts to advance the 
Post-Summit dialogue between North and South Korea that would eventuate 
in unification and a final peace. Such a charter could also lay out 
U.S. policy with regard to weapons proliferation, narcotics 
trafficking, terrorism, environmental degradation, and other 
transnational issues. In short, by clearly enunciating U.S. policy 
toward Asia, a Asian Pacific Charter would establish a bright line 
clearly understood by all nations in the region. At the same time, it 
would provide a basis for sound long-term relations with China.
  Most agree that China presents the greatest challenge to the United 
States in the Pacific, with the potential to be a major destabilizing 
force in the region. One reason that the United States has difficulties 
in its relations with China is because the latter is governed by a 
totalitarian regime. It is not a democracy. We do not have comparable 
problems with such other Asian democracies as Japan, India, Taiwan, 
Thailand, South Korea, or the Philippines. To some, it is obvious that 
the Beijing government is bent upon a policy of regional expansion and 
domination, and to eventually expelling the United States from the 
Western Pacific.
  Those who espouse this view believe that any improvement of relations 
with Washington on the part of Beijing is purely tactical. They note 
that senior U.S. officials arriving in the Chinese capital for talks 
are almost invariably greeted by editorials in the government-
controlled press denouncing American ``hegemonism.'' Others believe 
that the Chinese government views America in such a light because of 
our occasional criticisms regarding what it views as ``internal 
matters,'' such as its violations of internationally recognized human 
rights, its illegal occupation of Tibet; its repression of any dissent; 
or its transfer of nuclear weapons technology to rogue regimes such as 
Iran despite a commitment not to do so.
  America's foreign policy toward the region is perceived by Asians as 
amounting to one issue: trade. There seems to be a belief that enhanced 
trade, even at a cost to the United States of a trade deficit 
approaching $70 billion a year, will bring economic prosperity to 
China; and that, in turn, will improve the prospects for democracy, the 
rule of law, and respect for human rights. Missing from that 
calculation, is an understanding that trade alone does not bring 
democracy and the rule of law, and that trade flourishes best under the 
umbrella of democracy's rule of law. An Asian Pacific Charter would 
emphasize the importance that the United States attaches to such 
principles as these. To paraphrase something His Holiness, the Dalai 
Lama of Tibet recently said, our concerns are not about the Chinese 
people or Chinese culture, but about the Chinese communist government. 
An Asian Pacific Charter could help to encourage China's participation 
as a fully responsible and constructive member of the international 
system.
  America's interests in Asia and the Pacific are relatively simple and 
straightforward, including promotion of democracy and the rule of law; 
human and religious rights; market economies; and regional security for 
all. Many nations in the region look to the United States for continued 
leadership, but, despite any high-sounding rhetoric, we have too often 
been seen as myopic in placing short-term opportunities ahead of the 
longer-term pursuit of both regional stability and security.
  The time has come to lay out an architecture of policy that will 
establish our intention to remain engaged in Asia and the terms of our 
continued long-term engagement. A Commission to establish an Asian 
Pacific Charter for the 21st century would provide the framework for 
such a sound U.S. policy. It would assure the entire region--allies and 
otherwise--of the continuation of a leadership that is consistent, 
coherent, and coordinated.
  Accordingly, I invite my colleagues to support H.R. 4899, and I 
submit the full text of H.R. 4899 to be printed at this point in the 
Record.

                               H.R. 4899

     A BILL To establish a commission to promote a consistent and 
         coordinated foreign policy of the United States to ensure 
         economic and military security in the Pacific region of 
         Asia through the promotion of democracy, human rights, 
         the rule of law, free trade, and open markets, and for 
         other purposes.
       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Asian Pacific Charter 
     Commission Act of 2000''.

     SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

       The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to promote a consistent and coordinated foreign policy 
     of the United States to ensure economic and military security 
     in the Pacific region of Asia;
       (2) to support democratization, the rule of law, and human 
     rights in the Pacific region of Asia;
       (3) to advance free trade and open markets on a reciprocal 
     basis in the Pacific region of Asia;
       (4) to combat terrorism and the spread of illicit narcotics 
     in the Pacific region of Asia; and
       (5) to advocate an active role for the United States 
     Government in diplomacy, security, and the furtherance of 
     good governance and the rule of law in the Pacific region of 
     Asia.

     SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.

       There is established a commission to be known as the Asian 
     Pacific Charter Commission (hereafter in this Act referred to 
     as the ``Commission'').

     SEC. 4. DUTIES OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Duties.--The Commission shall establish and carry out, 
     either directly or through nongovernmental and international 
     organizations, programs, projects, and activities to achieve 
     the purposes described in section 2 of this Act, including 
     research and educational or legislative exchanges between the 
     United States and countries in the Pacific region of Asia.
       (b) Advisory Committees.--The Commission may establish such 
     advisory committees as the Commission determines to be 
     necessary to advise the Commission on policy matters relating 
     to the Pacific region of Asia and to otherwise carry out this 
     Act.

     SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Composition.--The Commission shall be composed of 7 
     members all of whom--
       (1) shall be citizens of the United States who are not 
     officers or employees of any government, except to the extent 
     they are considered such officers or employees by virtue of 
     their membership on the Commission; and
       (2) shall have interest and expertise in issues relating to 
     the Pacific region of Asia.
       (b) Appointment.--
       (1) In general.--The individuals referred to in subsection 
     (a) shall be appointed--
       (A) by the President, after consultation with the Speaker 
     of the House of Representa-tives, the Chairman of the 
     Committee on International Relations of the House of 
     Representatives, the Majority Leader of the Senate, and the 
     Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; 
     and
       (B) by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
       (2) Political affiliation.--Not more than 4 of the 
     individuals appointed under paragraph (1) may be affiliated 
     with the same political party.
       (c) Term.--Each member of the Commission shall be appointed 
     for a term of 6 years.
       (d) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled 
     in the same manner in which the original appointment was 
     made.
       (e) Chairperson; Vice Chairperson.--The President shall 
     designate a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the 
     Commission from among the members of the Commission.
       (f) Compensation.--
       (1) Rates of pay.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
     members of the Commission shall serve without pay.
       (2) Travel expenses.--Each member of the Commission may 
     receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of 
     subsistence, in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of 
     title 5, United States Code.
       (g) Meetings.--The Commission shall meet at the call of the 
     Chairperson.
       (h) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Commission 
     shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may 
     hold hearings.
       (i) Affirmative Determinations.--An affirmative vote by a 
     majority of the members of the Commission shall be required 
     for any affirmative determination by the Commission under 
     section 4.

     SEC. 6. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Contributions.--The Commission may accept, use, and 
     dispose of gifts, bequests, or devises of services or 
     property, both real and personal, for the purpose of 
     assisting or facilitating the work of the Commission. Gifts, 
     bequests, or devises of money and proceeds from sales of 
     other property received as gifts, bequests, or devises shall 
     be deposited in the Treasury and shall be available for 
     disbursement upon order of the Commission.
       (b) Mails.--The Commission may use the United States mails 
     in the same manner and under the same conditions as other 
     departments and agencies of the United States.

     SEC. 7. STAFF AND SUPPORT SERVICES OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Executive Director.--The Commission shall have an 
     executive director appointed by Commission after consultation 
     with the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 
     Majority Leader of the Senate. The executive director shall 
     serve the Commission under such terms and conditions as the 
     Commission determines to be appropriate.
       (b) Staff.--The Commission may appoint and fix the pay of 
     such additional personnel, not to exceed 10 individuals, as 
     it considers appropriate.
       (C) Staff of Federal Agencies.--Upon request of the 
     chairperson of the Commission, the head of any Federal agency 
     may detail, on a nonreimbursable basis, any of the personnel 
     of the agency to the Commission to

[[Page 15832]]

     assist the Commission in carrying out its duties under this 
     Act.
       (d) Experts and Consultants.--The chairperson of the 
     Commission may procure temporary and intermittent services 
     under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code.

     SEC. 8. REPORTS OF COMMISSION.

       The Commission shall prepare and submit to Congress an 
     annual report on the programs, projects, and activities on 
     the Commission for the prior year.

     SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       (a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to 
     carry out this Act $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
     2001 and 2002.
       (b) Availability.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to the 
     authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) are 
     authorized to remain available until expended.

     

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