Formatting necessary for an accurate reading of this text may be shown by tags (e.g., <DELETED> or <BOLD>) or may be missing from this TXT display. For complete and accurate display of this text, see the PDF.
[Page S2764]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS
______
SENATE RESOLUTION 609--RECOGNIZING THAT FOR 45 YEARS, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
AND THE UNITED STATES HAVE SHARED A CLOSE FRIENDSHIP BASED ON SHARED
GOALS OF STABILITY, PROSPERITY, AND PEACE IN THE REGION, AND EXPRESSING
THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT THE UNITED STATES WILL CONTINUE TO REMAIN
A STRONG, RELIABLE, AND ACTIVE PARTNER IN THE PACIFIC
Mr. GARDNER (for himself and Ms. Hirono) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 609
Whereas Papua New Guinea became independent on September
16, 1975;
Whereas Papua New Guinea is a valued security partner of
the United States, participating in the International
Military Education and Training (IMET) program, which sends
members of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force to professional
military education courses in the United States;
Whereas the United States has partnered with Papua New
Guinea and Australia to modernize Papua New Guinea Defence
Force's Lombrum Naval Base on Manus Island to assist Papua
New Guinea in defending its sovereignty and maritime rights;
Whereas the United States Government supports cooperative
activities with Papua New Guinea, including sustainable
fisheries management, HIV/AIDS prevention, and care, and
those authorized by the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act;
Whereas section 1252 of the National Defense Authorization
Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (Public Law 116-92) expands the
number of countries that receive assistance under the Indo-
Pacific Maritime Security Initiative, including Papua New
Guinea;
Whereas Papua New Guinea hosted the Asia Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Summit in
November 2018; and
Whereas Palm Desert, California and Port Moresby, Papua New
Guinea are sister cities, a broad-based, long-term
partnership to promote peace through mutual respect,
understanding, and cooperation centered on people-to-people
exchanges: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) commends Papua New Guinea on successfully maintaining a
parliamentary democracy since independence, and its ongoing
efforts to deliver greater transparency in infrastructure
development and accountability in government;
(2) supports and affirms the full implementation of
provisions of the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act of 2018
(Public Law 115-409) with regard to deepening its cooperation
with Papua New Guinea in areas of mutual interest, including
fisheries and marine resource conservation, environmental
challenges and resilience, global health, development and
trade, people-to-people ties, and continuing United States
assistance, as appropriate, to support the rule of law, good
governance, and economic development;
(3) supports the Papua New Guinea Electrification
Partnership in cooperation with Australia, Japan, and New
Zealand, a project to connect 70 percent of the population to
electricity by 2030, and the executive branch's commitment to
principles-based, sustainable infrastructure development that
is transparent, non-discriminatory, environmentally
responsible, promotes fair and open competition, upholds
robust standards, meets the genuine needs of the people of
Papua New Guinea, and avoids unsustainable debt burdens; and
(4) recognizes Papua New Guinea's participation in
multilateral institutions, including the United Nations,
International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Asian Development
Bank, International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Trade
Organization, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional
Environmental Programme, as well as the Pacific Islands
Forum; Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum,
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum
(ARF), the Pacific Community, and the South Pacific Regional
Environmental Program.
____________________