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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1011 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1011
To establish the position of Country China Officer in the Department of
State to monitor and counter financing projects around the world that
are backed by the People's Republic of China.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 12, 2025
Mr. Lankford introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish the position of Country China Officer in the Department of
State to monitor and counter financing projects around the world that
are backed by the People's Republic of China.
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 ``Belt and Road Oversight Act''.
SEC. 2. COUNTRY CHINA OFFICER.
(a) Designation.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall direct all Chiefs
of Mission to designate 1 Foreign Service Officer in a United States
embassy or other diplomatic post in each country with whom the United
States has diplomatic relations as Country China Officer.
(b) Duties.--Each Country China Officer shall monitor and report on
the activity of the People's Republic of China in his or her country of
responsibility, including capital investment in critical infrastructure
and other projects associated with the People's Republic of China,
including the Belt and Road Initiative.
(c) Sunset.--The requirement to designate Country China Officers
under subsection (a) shall expire on the date that is 10 years after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE PROJECTS.
(a) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of State shall direct all United States
embassies, working through the designated Country China Officer, to
prepare a report that details assets within their respective country of
operation that are controlled or financed by the Government of the
People's Republic of China or a state-owned enterprise in the People's
Republic of China.
(b) Contents.--Each report required under subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) an assessment of the respective country's debt
obligations to the People's Republic of China;
(2) a list of known infrastructure projects in the
respective country that are financed from capital provided by--
(A) the banking system of the People's Republic of
China, including--
(i) policy banks, including--
(I) the China Development Bank;
(II) the Export-Import Bank of
China; and
(III) the Agricultural Development
Bank of China;
(ii) state-owned commercial banks,
including--
(I) the Industrial and Commercial
Bank of China;
(II) the Agricultural Bank of
China;
(III) the China Construction Bank;
(IV) the Bank of Communications
Limited; and
(V) the Bank of China;
(iii) sovereign wealth funds, including--
(I) the China Investment
Corporation;
(II) China Life Insurance Company;
(III) the China National Social
Security Fund; and
(IV) the Silk Road Fund;
(iv) urban commercial banks; and
(v) rural financial institutions;
(B) international financing institutions,
including--
(i) the Asian Infrastructure Investment
Bank; and
(ii) the New Development Bank; and
(C) any other financial institution or entity
otherwise controlled, overseen, or managed by the
Government of the People's Republic of China;
(3) the identification of the infrastructure projects
referred to in paragraph (2) that are projects under the Belt
and Road Initiative;
(4) an assessment of projects that have caused the country
to incur significant debt that has the potential to harm its
economic prosperity and national sovereignty;
(5) a list of the known or speculated collateral listed by
the respective country for the debts incurred by Belt and Road
Initiative projects referred to in paragraph (1);
(6) a list of the known assets owned by the Government of
the People's Republic of China or state-owned enterprises in
the People's Republic of China, including telecommunications
and critical infrastructure; and
(7) a list of known activities at research institutions or
institutions of higher education controlled or financed by the
Government of the People's Republic of China or state-owned
enterprises in the People's Republic of China.
(c) Submission and Distribution of Report.--
(1) Initial submission.--Not later than 1 year after the
date on which the Secretary of State issues the directive
described in subsection (a), the Chief of Mission in each
country shall submit the report required under subsection (a)
to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.
(2) Distribution.--The Under Secretary of State for
Political Affairs shall prepare and distribute a report that
includes all of the information from the individual country
reports received pursuant to paragraph (1) to--
(A) the heads of other bureaus and agencies of the
Department of State, as appropriate;
(B) the United States International Development
Finance Corporation;
(C) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate;
(D) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(E) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the
Senate;
(F) the Committee on Finance of the Senate;
(G) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives;
(H) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of
Representatives;
(I) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
of the House of Representatives; and
(J) the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives.
SEC. 4. NOTIFICATION OF FUTURE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE PROJECTS.
After the preparation and submission of the reports required under
section 3(a), the Secretary of State shall require the respective
embassy and the China Desk at the Department of State to inform the
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs of any project described
in section 3(b)(2) not later than 30 days after the date on which the
Country China Officer is informed of such project.
SEC. 5. ANNUAL COMPREHENSIVE REPORT OF BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE
PROJECTS.
During the 10-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs shall
submit an annual report to Congress that--
(1) contains all findings relating to projects controlled
or financed by the Government of the People's Republic of China
or state-owned enterprises in the People's Republic of China
submitted by Country China Officers through the process
described in sections 3 and 4 during the 12-month reporting
period; and
(2) includes updated findings and analyses related to
paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of section 3(b).
SEC. 6. ANNUAL STRATEGY TO COUNTER PRC INFLUENCE.
(a) In General.--The Country China Officer at each respective
embassy, in consultation with the Chief of Mission for the respective
country, shall develop a comprehensive, country-specific strategy to
counter the influence of the People's Republic of China, including a
plan to counter anti-American messaging by the People's Republic of
China, within their country of responsibility.
(b) Use of Strategy.--The strategy developed pursuant to subsection
(a) shall be used to equip all personnel across all embassies,
consulates, and other diplomatic posts in the respective country of
responsibility with the tools needed to effectively counter the
influence of the People's Republic of China in their respective context
and country of responsibility.
(c) Submission.--During the 10-year period beginning on the date of
the enactment of this Act, each Chief of Mission shall submit an annual
report to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs that--
(1) describes the implementation of the strategy developed
pursuant to subsection (a) during the reporting period; and
(2) assesses specific challenges and opportunities relating
to the People's Republic of China in the respective country of
responsibility.
(d) Distribution.--The Under Secretary of State for Political
Affairs shall submit an annual report that summarizes the information
contained in the reports received pursuant to subsection (c) to the
heads of the bureaus of the Department of State, as appropriate.
(e) Exclusions.--Countries with limited or no investments by the
Government of the People's Republic of China shall be excluded from the
strategy developed pursuant to subsection (a).
SEC. 7. PROCUREMENT PROJECTIONS.
(a) Annual Report.--During the 10-year period beginning on the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Country China Officer at each
respective embassy, in consultation with other embassy personnel, shall
submit an annual report to the Under Secretary of State for Political
Affairs that--
(1) describes the procurement and infrastructure needs of
their respective country of responsibility; and
(2) assesses specific challenges and opportunities relating
to potential financing by the People's Republic of China for
procurement and infrastructure projects to meet such needs.
(b) Distribution.--The Under Secretary of State for Political
Affairs shall submit an annual report summarizing the information
contained in the reports received pursuant to subsection (a) to--
(1) the heads of the bureaus of the Department of State, as
appropriate; and
(2) other instrumentalities of the Federal Government,
including the United States International Development Finance
Corporation.
SEC. 8. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING DEVELOPMENT FINANCE.
It is the sense of Congress that, as the People's Republic of
China's influence grows through infrastructure (particularly
infrastructure that can easily be shifted from economic to military
uses), the United States International Development Finance Corporation
should prioritize providing alternative financing opportunities that
increase port and air field capacity of countries that--
(1) meet the investment criteria set forth in title II of
the BUILD Act of 2018 (division F of Public Law 115-254; 22
U.S.C. 9621 et seq.); and
(2) are targets of the predatory infrastructure development
scheme of the People's Republic of China commonly known as the
Belt and Road Initiative.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
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