Van Hollen Announces Bipartisan ZTE Amendment on Defense Bill

Statement

Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) announced a bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would ensure that if the Trump Administration moves forward with their misguided attempted to let ZTE off the hook, the NDAA would stop them in their tracks. Senators Chuck Schumer, (D-N.Y.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) also cosponsored the amendment.

The amendment states that if the President lifts the Commerce Department's export restrictions on ZTE before the NDAA is enacted, those restrictions will be automatically reinstated once the NDAA is signed into law. At that time, if President Trump still wants to pursue the deal, he must certify to Congress that ZTE has met certain conditions. This builds on Senator Van Hollen's original amendment to prohibit the President from modifying penalties on sanctioned Chinese telecommunication companies like ZTE, which passed in the Senate Banking Committee with broad bipartisan support and was included in the base text of the NDAA.

"ZTE has violated U.S. laws time and again, which is why President Trump's own Administration took action against the company. His deal to undo that action -- and threaten our national security in order to protect Chinese jobs -- cannot move forward. This amendment will ensure that, regardless of action the Administration takes right now, Congress will protect American interests and national security," said Senator Van Hollen.

The amendment also would prohibit all U.S. government agencies from purchasing or leasing telecommunications equipment and/or services from Huawei, ZTE, or any subsidiaries or affiliates and would ban the U.S. government from using grants and loans to subsidize Huawei, ZTE, or any subsidiaries or affiliates.

Source