House Bill Aims to ‘Reform’ AUKUS Defense Trade
Reps. Young Kim, R-Calif., Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., and Madeleine Dean, D-Pa., introduced a bill June 27 aimed at improving defense trade within the Australia-U.K.-U.S. (AUKUS) security partnership, especially the technology development collaboration activities envisioned under Pillar II.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
The AUKUS Reform for Military Optimization and Review Act, or ARMOR Act, would clarify that the expedited export license review process under AUKUS also applies to reexports, retransfers, temporary imports and brokering activities. It would require the president to submit an annual report to Congress on implementation of the expedited license review process.
The bill also would direct the State Department to review annually the list of items excluded from AUKUS's license exemption. “Frequent review is needed to ensure the list is relevant and aligned with AUKUS goals,” a bill summary says.
The bill also would exempt AUKUS-related exports and transfers from the congressional notification process. The requirement to obtain approval from key lawmakers “may cause burdensome delays,” the summary says.
The bill was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Sens. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., introduced their own AUKUS improvement legislation June 18 (see 2506200003).