Baltic Reassurance Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3064 To require a comprehensive, multilateral assessment of the military require- ments of Baltic countries to deter and resist aggression by the Russian Federation, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 3, 2019 Mr. CONAWAY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic- tion of the committee concerned A BILL To require a comprehensive, multilateral assessment of the military requirements of Baltic countries to deter and resist aggression by the Russian Federation, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Baltic Reassurance 4 Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 3064 IH (1) The Russian Federation seeks to diminish 1 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) 2 and recreate its sphere of influence in Europe using 3 coercion, intimidation, and outright aggression. 4 (2) Deterring the Russian Federation from 5 such aggression is vital for transatlantic security. 6 (3) The illegal occupation of Crimea by the 7 Russian Federation and its continued engagement of 8 destabilizing and subversive activities against inde- 9 pendent and free states is of increasing concern. 10 (4) The Russian Federation also continues to 11 disregard treaties, international laws and rights to 12 freedom of navigation, territorial integrity, and sov- 13 ereign international borders. 14 (5) The Russian Federation’s continued occupa- 15 tion of Georgian and Ukrainian territories and the 16 sustained military buildup in the Russian Federa- 17 tion’s Western Military District and Kaliningrad has 18 threatened continental peace and stability. 19 (6) The Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and 20 Lithuania are particularly vulnerable to an increas- 21 ingly aggressive and subversive Russian Federation. 22 (7) In a declaration to celebrate 100 years of 23 independence of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania 24 issued on April 3, 2018, the Trump Administration 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 3064 IH reaffirmed United States commitments to these Bal- 1 tic countries to ‘‘improve military readiness and ca- 2 pabilities through sustained security assistance’’ and 3 ‘‘explore new ideas and opportunities, including air 4 defense, bilaterally and in NATO, to enhance deter- 5 rence across the region’’. 6 (8) These highly valued NATO allies of the 7 United States have repeatedly demonstrated their 8 commitment to advancing mutual interests as well 9 as those of the NATO alliance. 10 (9) The Baltic countries also continue to par- 11 ticipate in United States-led exercises to further pro- 12 mote coordination, cooperation, and interoperability 13 among allies and partner countries, and continue to 14 demonstrate their reliability and commitment to pro- 15 vide for their own defense. 16 (10) Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia each hosts 17 a respected NATO Center of Excellence that pro- 18 vides expertise to educate and promote NATO allies 19 and partners in areas of vital interest to the alliance. 20 (11) United States support and commitment to 21 allies across Europe has been a lynchpin for peace 22 and security on the continent for over 70 years. 23 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 24 It is the sense of Congress as follows: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 3064 IH (1) The United States is committed to the secu- 1 rity of the Baltic countries and should strengthen 2 cooperation and support capacity-building initiatives 3 aimed at improving the defense and security of such 4 countries. 5 (2) The United States should lead a multilat- 6 eral effort to develop a strategy to deepen joint ca- 7 pabilities with Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, NATO al- 8 lies, and other regional partners, to deter against ag- 9 gression from the Russian Federation in the Baltic 10 region, specifically in areas that would strengthen 11 interoperability, joint capabilities, and military readi- 12 ness necessary for Baltic countries to strengthen 13 their national resilience. 14 (3) The United States should explore the feasi- 15 bility of providing long range, mobile air defense sys- 16 tems in the Baltic region, including through 17 leveraging cost-sharing mechanisms and multilateral 18 deployment with NATO allies to reduce financial 19 burdens on host countries. 20 SEC. 4. DEFENSE ASSESSMENT. 21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 22 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense 23 shall, in consultation with appropriate counterparts of 24 Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, North Atlantic Treaty Organi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 3064 IH zation (NATO) allies, and other regional partners, con- 1 duct a comprehensive, multilateral assessment of the mili- 2 tary requirements of such countries to deter and resist ag- 3 gression by the Russian Federation that— 4 (1) provides an assessment of past and current 5 initiatives to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, 6 readiness, and interoperability of Lithuania, Latvia, 7 and Estonia’s national defense capabilities; and 8 (2) assesses the manner in which to meet those 9 objectives, including future resource requirements 10 and recommendations, by undertaking activities in 11 the following areas: 12 (A) Activities to increase the rotational 13 and forward presence, improve the capabilities, 14 and enhance the posture and response readiness 15 of the United States or forces of NATO in the 16 Baltic region. 17 (B) Activities to improve air defense sys- 18 tems, including modern air-surveillance capabili- 19 ties. 20 (C) Activities to improve counter-un- 21 manned aerial system capabilities. 22 (D) Activities to improve command and 23 control capabilities through increasing commu- 24 nications, technology, and intelligence capacity 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 3064 IH and coordination, including secure and hard- 1 ened communications. 2 (E) Activities to improve intelligence, sur- 3 veillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. 4 (F) Activities to enhance maritime domain 5 awareness. 6 (G) Activities to improve military and de- 7 fense infrastructure, logistics, and access, par- 8 ticularly transport of military supplies and 9 equipment. 10 (H) Investments to ammunition stocks and 11 storage. 12 (I) Activities and training to enhance cyber 13 security and electronic warfare capabilities. 14 (J) Bilateral and multilateral training and 15 exercises. 16 (K) New and existing cost-sharing mecha- 17 nisms with United States and NATO allies to 18 reduce financial burden. 19 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 20 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense 21 shall submit to the congressional defense committees a re- 22 port that includes each of the following: 23 (1) A report on the findings of the assessment 24 conducted pursuant to subsection (a). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 3064 IH (2) A list of any recommendations resulting 1 from such assessment. 2 (3) An assessment of the resource requirements 3 to achieve the objectives described in subsection 4 (a)(1) with respect to the national defense capability 5 of Baltic countries, including potential investments 6 by host countries. 7 (4) A plan for the United States to use appro- 8 priate security cooperation authorities or other au- 9 thorities to— 10 (A) facilitate relevant recommendations in- 11 cluded in the list described in paragraph (2); 12 (B) expand joint training between the 13 Armed Forces and the military of Lithuania, 14 Latvia, or Estonia, including with the participa- 15 tion of other NATO allies; and 16 (C) support United States foreign military 17 sales and other equipment transfers to Baltic 18 countries especially for the activities described 19 in subparagraphs (A) through (I) of subsection 20 (a)(2). 21 SEC. 5. CONGRESSIONAL DEFENSE COMMITTEES DEFINED. 22 In this Act, the term ‘‘congressional defense commit- 23 tees’’ means— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 3064 IH (1) the Committee on Armed Services, the 1 Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee 2 on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; 3 and 4 (2) the Committee on Armed Services, the 5 Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee 6 on Appropriations of the Senate. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:31 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3064.IH H3064 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS