A resolution recognizing the longstanding partnership between the United States and Australia to share critical firefighting resources during times of crisis.

III 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. RES. 527 Recognizing the longstanding partnership between the United States and Australia to share critical firefighting resources during times of crisis. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 4, 2020 Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. BARRASSO, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. CASEY, Mr. COONS, Mr. CORNYN, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. DAINES, Mr. ENZI, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. GARDNER, Ms. HARRIS, Mrs. LOEFFLER, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. PERDUE, Mr. RISCH, Mr. ROMNEY, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. SCOTT of Florida, Mrs. SHA- HEEN, Ms. SINEMA, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. TESTER, Mr. THUNE, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. BRAUN, and Ms. ROSEN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations RESOLUTION Recognizing the longstanding partnership between the United States and Australia to share critical firefighting re- sources during times of crisis. Whereas Australia and the United States have long held a unique relationship, marked by close diplomatic, security, and economic cooperation; Whereas Australia and the United States celebrated 100 years of mateship on July 4, 2018, marking the 100-year anniversary of the Battle of Hamel, which helped turn the tide of World War I; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Mar 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR527.IS SR527 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •SRES 527 IS Whereas the United States and Australia are entering the seventieth anniversary of the Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty (ANZUS Treaty), the 1951 collective security non-binding agreement between Australia and New Zealand and, separately, Australia and the United States, to cooperate on military matters; Whereas the United States and Australia have shared fire- fighting resources, including specialist firefighters, for over 15 years; Whereas the United States and Australia are experiencing some of the hottest and driest weather conditions on record, exacerbating the threat of wildfires and contrib- uting to longer wildfire seasons in both nations; Whereas over 100 Australian firefighters traveled to the United States in August 2018, to assist with efforts to contain wildfires that threatened communities in Cali- fornia, Oregon, and Washington; Whereas over 300 American firefighters have been mobilized to Australia since December 2019 to help combat and contain devastating bushfires that have burned over 30,000,000 acres of land; and Whereas multiple United States agencies, including the Bu- reau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Fish and Wildlife Services, have provided American firefighters to help combat Australia’s bushfires: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 (1) recognizes the value of the longstanding 2 partnership between the United States and Australia 3 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Mar 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR527.IS SR527 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •SRES 527 IS to share critical firefighting resources during times 1 of crisis; 2 (2) recognizes the efforts and bravery of Aus- 3 tralian firefighters who have not only risked their 4 lives to fight wildfires in their own country but also 5 helped contain several dangerous wildfires in North 6 America; 7 (3) recognizes the efforts and bravery of Amer- 8 ican firefighters who have not only risked their lives 9 to fight wildfires in their own country but have also 10 provided their services to combat the bushfires cur- 11 rently ravaging the Australian continent; 12 (4) honors the ultimate sacrifice of the three 13 American firefighters who lost their lives assisting in 14 fighting Australia’s bushfires in the crash of the 15 Large Air Tanker in the Snowy Monaro area of Aus- 16 tralia on January 23, 2020, and extends deepest 17 condolences to their families, friends, and colleagues; 18 (5) expresses full support for the people of Aus- 19 tralia as they focus on recovery and rebuilding af- 20 fected areas and communities; 21 (6) supports continued partnership between the 22 Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research 23 Organisation and United States Federal agencies to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Mar 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR527.IS SR527 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •SRES 527 IS share research, technology, and best practices re- 1 lated to wildfire mitigation and suppression; and 2 (7) supports continued cooperation and greater 3 collaboration between Australia and the United 4 States to mitigate the underlying factors driving ex- 5 tended and more intense wildfire years in both coun- 6 tries. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:31 Mar 04, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR527.IS SR527 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS