Allied Defense Sales Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 8665) to require the implementation of a strategy to encourage foreign partners to participate in the foreign military sales and direct commercial sales processes on a multinational basis, and for other purposes.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 8665

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 ``Allied Defense Sales Act''. SEC. 2. STRATEGY AND REPORT ON MULTINATIONAL PROCUREMENT FROM THE UNITED STATES.

(a) Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall implement a strategy to encourage foreign partners to participate in the foreign military sales and direct commercial sales processes on a multinational basis. Such strategy shall incorporate existing efforts by the Department of State to--

(1) survey interest in participating in such multinational procurement processes among potentially eligible countries;

(2) identify countries and partners who may be eligible to serve as the lead purchase coordinator for a multinational procurement process, and potential incentives for their participation as lead coordinator;

(3) review pathways for participation in foreign military sales or direct commercial sales processes for countries determined to be ineligible for foreign military financing loans;

(4) identify challenges and solutions for the Department in carrying out such processes in accordance with the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.), including applicable end-use monitoring, technical assistance agreements, and license filing requirements;

(5) identify ways to provide for expedited license authorizations, sales other than for programs of record, and other potential efforts to increase speed and ease enhanced use of multinational procurement processes;

(6) detailing the benefits of multinational procurement processes to the national security interest, including enhanced military interoperability and strengthening the domestic industrial base; and

(7) identify opportunities to develop and promote exportable defense articles and services, including for purposes of supporting the AUKUS partnership.

(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter for 3 years, the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the strategy required by subsection (a) and its implementation. Such report shall also include--

(1) an update on the development and implementation of the initial strategy during the period following the most recent prior submission of such report (if any);

(2) a description of challenges faced in the implementation of the strategy;

(3) a description of all efforts the Department has undertaken to overcome such challenges;

(4) a list and description of any potential legislative changes necessary to fully implement a multinational procurement process for foreign military sales and direct commercial sales; and

(5) a description of efforts to promote exportable defense articles and services specifically for use in multinational procurement processes, including those supporting the AUKUS partnership.

(c) Form.--The report required by subsection (b) shall be submitted in unclassified form and may include a classified annex.

(d) Definitions.--In this section--

(1) the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;

(2) the term ``AUKUS partnership'' means the enhanced trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced in September 2021; and

(3) the term ``multinational procurement process'' refers to a process by which defense articles or services are sold by the United States to a lead foreign nation, with the intent that the articles or services so sold will subsequently be retransferred to a previously identified group of participating countries, or to countries identified by reference to a qualifying multilateral partnership agreement, such as a cross-servicing agreement described in section 2350 of title 10, United States Code.

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Mr. MAST. 8665.

Mr. Speaker, it has long been recognized by our partners and allies that the American foreign military sales system is slow, inefficient, and opaque. While the benefits outweigh the costs for many of our closest allies, it takes a real investment of personnel, time, and resources for our foreign partners to be able to successfully participate in our foreign military sales.

American-made defense systems remain the most effective, advanced, and sought-after in the world, but we need to keep expanding our base of foreign partners that purchase American defense systems.

H.R. 8665, the Allied Defense Sales Act, is a bipartisan effort to break down barriers for smaller allies and smaller countries that do not have a longstanding defense sales relationship with the United States.

This bill allows smaller countries to pool resources and participate in the foreign military sales system, expanding America's circle of equipped, interoperable allies without requiring new foreign aid spending.

I thank my colleague Mr. Zinke of Montana, the sponsor of this bill, who led the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Foreign Arms Sales Task Force and has continued the important work of ensuring America remains the partner of choice for foreign defense sales.

This legislation passed the Foreign Affairs Committee with broad bipartisan support, and I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it on the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, it is essential that we do everything we can to equip our allies, big and small, with the best U.S. defense technology, ensuring that we remain interoperable with our partners in a conflict. This legislation is a key step forward to strengthening the U.S. defense industrial base and bolstering our allies' defense capabilities with the best equipment anywhere on the globe, the United States of America equipment, which is generations beyond everybody else's.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 8665, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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