April 9, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 61 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages S2333-S2334]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION 152--EXPRESSING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE UNITED STATES 
  ALLIANCE WITH THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA AND THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF KOREAN 
                     AMERICANS IN THE UNITED STATES

  Mr. LANKFORD (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Gardner, and Mr. Markey) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 152

       Whereas the United States and the Republic of Korea enjoy a 
     comprehensive alliance partnership, founded in shared 
     strategic interests and cemented by a commitment to 
     democratic values;
       Whereas the United States and the Republic of Korea work 
     closely together to promote international peace and security, 
     economic prosperity, human rights, and the rule of law;
       Whereas the relationship between the United States and the 
     Republic of Korea goes as far back as Korea's Chosun Dynasty, 
     when the United States and Korea established diplomatic 
     relations under the 1882 Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce, 
     and Navigation;

[[Page S2334]]

       Whereas, on August 15, 1948, the Provisional Government of 
     the Republic of Korea, established on April 11, 1919, was 
     dissolved and transitioned to the First Republic of Korea, 
     their first independent government;
       Whereas United States military personnel have maintained a 
     continuous presence on the Korean Peninsula since the Mutual 
     Defense Treaty Between the United States and the Republic of 
     Korea (5 UST 2368) was signed at Washington on October 1, 
     1953;
       Whereas, on May 7, 2013, the United States and the Republic 
     of Korea signed a Joint Declaration in Commemoration of the 
     60th Anniversary of the Alliance Between the Republic of 
     Korea and the United States;
       Whereas 63 years ago the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, 
     and Navigation between the United States and the Republic of 
     Korea, with Protocol (8 UST 2217) was signed at Seoul on 
     November 28 1956;
       Whereas the economic relationship between the United States 
     and the Republic of Korea is deep and mutually beneficial to 
     both countries;
       Whereas the Republic of Korea is the United States' 
     seventh-largest trading partner;
       Whereas the Republic of Korea is the 5th fastest growing 
     source of foreign direct investment in the United States;
       Whereas the United States is the largest source of foreign 
     direct investment in the Republic of Korea;
       Whereas, on January 13, 1903, 102 pioneer Korean immigrants 
     arrived in the United States, initiating the first chapter of 
     Korean immigration to America;
       Whereas the over 2,000,000 Korean Americans living in the 
     United States contribute to the diversity and prosperity of 
     our nation, participate in all facets of American life, and 
     have made significant contributions to the economic vitality 
     of the United States;
       Whereas members of the Korean American community serve with 
     distinction in the United States Armed Forces;
       Whereas Korean Americans continue to build and strengthen 
     the alliance between the United States and the Republic of 
     Korea; and
       Whereas the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (Public Law 
     115-409), signed into law on December 31, 2018, states that 
     the United States Government--
       (1) is committed to the Mutual Defense Treaty Between the 
     United States and the Republic of Korea and all related and 
     subsequent bilateral security agreements and arrangements 
     concluded on or before the date of the enactment of that Act;
       (2) recognizes the vital role of the alliance between the 
     United States and South Korea in promoting peace and security 
     in the Indo-Pacific region; and
       (3) calls for the strengthening and broadening of 
     diplomatic, economic, and security ties between the United 
     States and the Republic of Korea: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the vital role the alliance of the United 
     States and the Republic of Korea plays in promoting peace and 
     security in the Indo-Pacific region;
       (2) calls for the strengthening and broadening of 
     diplomatic, economic, and security ties between the United 
     States and the Republic of Korea; and
       (3) reaffirms the United States' alliance with the Republic 
     of Korea is central to advancing United States interests and 
     engagement in the region, based on shared commitments 
     democracy, free-market economics, human rights, and the rule 
     of law.

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