We Go Together Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7234 To strengthen the Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and the Republic of Korea, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 18, 2020 Mr. BERA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To strengthen the Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and the Republic of Korea, 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 ‘‘We Go Together Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 5 It is the sense of Congress that— 6 (1) with respect to the alliance between the 7 United States and the Republic of Korea— 8 (A) ‘‘we go together’’ or ‘‘katchi kapshida’’ 9 is an enduring motto inspired by the shared 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7234 IH sacrifice of the United States and the Republic 1 of Korea during the Korean War, reinforced by 2 our shared values and reaffirmed each time the 3 Republic of Korea has stood alongside the 4 United States in the four major wars the 5 United States has fought outside Korea since 6 1945; 7 (B) a transactional view of the alliance be- 8 tween the United States and the Republic of 9 Korea is contrary to the spirit of ‘‘we go to- 10 gether’’; 11 (C) 70 years since the start of the Korean 12 War, as the People’s Republic of China esca- 13 lates its aggressive behavior in maritime and air 14 domains and the Democratic People’s Republic 15 of Korea continues to enhance and test weapons 16 that threaten regional peace and security, a new 17 strategic environment in the Indo-Pacific region 18 has reinforced the importance of the alliance 19 between the United States and the Republic of 20 Korea; 21 (D) the 2018 National Defense Strategy 22 states that ‘‘the willingness of rivals to abandon 23 aggression will depend on their perception of 24 . . . the vitality of our alliances and partner- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7234 IH ships’’, and thus United States Government ac- 1 tions and public statements that undermine the 2 United States relationship with the Republic of 3 Korea harm United States national security 4 and exacerbate risks to members of the Armed 5 Forces and United States allies and partners; 6 and 7 (E) United States alliances and troop de- 8 ployments should be based on shared principles 9 and goals, not on the profit motive; and 10 (2) with respect to nationals of the Republic of 11 Korea who are employees of United States Forces 12 Korea— 13 (A) the United States Government should 14 endeavor to avoid actions that negatively affect 15 the welfare or well-being of such individuals; 16 (B) as stated by the Commander of United 17 States Forces Korea on March 31, 2020, the 18 partial furlough of such individuals was ‘‘heart- 19 breaking’’ and ‘‘in no way a reflection of their 20 performance, dedication, or conduct’’; and 21 (C) the United States Government should 22 work with the Government of the Republic of 23 Korea to ensure that such individuals do not 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7234 IH bear the burden of breakdowns in negotiations 1 regarding defense cost-sharing. 2 SEC. 3. STRENGTHENING THE MUTUAL DEFENSE TREATY. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President may not take any 4 action to change United States policy with respect to the 5 Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and 6 Republic of Korea signed on October 1, 1953, unless, not 7 later than 120 days before the President takes such an 8 action, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 9 State submit to the appropriate committees of Congress— 10 (1) a detailed justification for such a change; 11 and 12 (2) a certification that— 13 (A) such a change is in the national inter- 14 est of the United States; and 15 (B) an alternative diplomatic agreement or 16 measure has been devised to replace any lost 17 capacity or benefits resulting from such a 18 change, including— 19 (i) the benefits to United States na- 20 tional security and regional security de- 21 rived from the presence of the United 22 States Armed Forces in the Republic of 23 Korea; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 7234 IH (ii) the nuclear nonproliferation bene- 1 fits derived from extended deterrence en- 2 hanced by the stationing of members of the 3 United States Armed Forces in the Repub- 4 lic of Korea; 5 (iii) the contributions of the Republic 6 of Korea in— 7 (I) countering illegitimate coer- 8 cion and debt diplomacy; 9 (II) promoting human rights; 10 (III) promoting freedom of navi- 11 gation and maritime security; 12 (IV) protecting the environment; 13 (V) improving global health; and 14 (VI) assisting the victims of con- 15 flict and disaster; 16 (iv) the cooperation of the Republic of 17 Korea with respect to United States efforts 18 to enforce existing United Nations Security 19 Council sanctions with respect to the 20 Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; 21 (v) the diplomatic support of the Re- 22 public of Korea for negotiations to imple- 23 ment the commitments of the Democratic 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 7234 IH People’s Republic of Korea at the 2018 1 Singapore Summit; and 2 (vi) the value of United States trade 3 with the Republic of Korea. 4 (b) FORM.—The justification and certification re- 5 quired by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified 6 form, but may include a classified annex. 7 (c) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DE- 8 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate commit- 9 tees of Congress’’ means— 10 (1) the Committee on Armed Services and the 11 Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; and 12 (2) the Committee on Armed Services and the 13 Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep- 14 resentatives. 15 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:30 Jul 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7234.IH H7234 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS