McCaul, Amo Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Effort to Streamline Defense Production for the U.S. and Allies
The AUKUS Improvement Act removes duplicative requirements for defense collaboration between the U.S., the U.K., and Australia
WASHINGTON – Congressman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) — chairman emeritus of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and co-chair of the Friends of Australia Caucus — and Vice Ranking Member Gabe Amo (D-R.I.) introduced the AUKUS Improvement Act, legislation that would exempt entities already vetted by the State Department as AUKUS Authorized Users from the Third Party Transfer requirement for Foreign Military Sales. The bipartisan, bicameral bill would enhance collaboration between companies across the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia to better counter rising threats in the Indo-Pacific.
"The Chinese Communist Party is working at lightning speed — in collaboration with its friends in Iran, Russia, and North Korea — to outpace the free world’s defense production base and shape the future of warfare,” said Chairman Emeritus McCaul. “The AUKUS security pact, which I prioritized as chairman, is working to ensure the U.S. and our allies maintain the edge. I’m proud to support the AUKUS Improvement Act to build on that momentum, deter CCP aggression in the Indo-Pacific, and help prevent a global catastrophe."
“Australia and the United Kingdom are steadfast, longstanding partners of the United States and critical allies in our mission to counter Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific,” said Vice Ranking Member Amo. “This smart, bipartisan, bicameral legislation will make it easier for our nation’s defense industrial bases to work together to build the next generation defense technologies needed to counter a rising China. I’m grateful to Chairman McCaul for his willingness to work across the aisle to get this done and to Senators Pete Ricketts and Tim Kaine for their leadership on this bill in the Senate.”
The legislation is also cosponsored by Friends of Australia Caucus Co-Chair Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Representatives Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) and Sarah McBride (D-Del).
Background:
Last Congress, McCaul championed several pieces of legislation to strengthen the Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) defense pact. He also penned a recent op-ed in the National Review on the critical importance of AUKUS.
Currently, AUKUS Authorized Users must undergo additional, often slow, Third Party Transfer approvals, causing unnecessary delays to defense production. By removing this redundant step, the AUKUS Improvement Act will expedite collaboration and strengthen the efficiency of AUKUS.
Full text of the legislation is available here.
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