Talk about the partnership between australia and the u. S. About partnerships sharing. It is expected to start shortly. This hearing of the Senate ForeignRelations Committee will come to order. In march, President Biden stood alongside leaders of the United Kingdom and australia to announce an opportunity to enhance u. S. Security interests by transforming our alliances and deterring aggression from the peoples republic of china. Xi jinpings hyper nationalist government has been laying claim to territory in International Waters and have built islands with runways for military aircraft and ballistic missiles. At the same time they are trying to influence australian politics, buying Critical Infrastructure like port facilities and making political donations. Even hacking the Australian Parliament and Major Political parties. This is a critical moment in which the United States needs to show that we are serious to our commitment to a free indo pacific. Congress has a vital wrote role to play and time is of the essence. Unfortunately, necessary codification has not gone as smoothly as some of us might have hoped. Senator risch and i were trying to codify the central pillars i wanted to acknowledge senator kaines part to the initiative. Part one is selling Nuclear Powered submarines to australia, making them the only country aside from the United Kingdom that we share this with. Training the crew and significant contributions from australia to expand our own pub submarine production capabilities. We offered legislation with all of these elements and they moved with strong bipartisan support. I want to thank senator risch for his partnership. It did not make it into the senates version of the authorization act. In addition to the French Submarine industry, some of our colleagues expressed concerns about the primary purpose, the transfer and support. If we failed to move forward with full congressional support looting the Nuclear Powered submarines, we are doing beijings job for them. China is against this because it complicates their population across the pacific. This will give australia the ability to protect security interest from thousands of miles away. We will be able to cruise submarines that operate directly out of naval bases together, further enhancing the deep bilateral relationship. And, enhancing our reach into the region. Congress needs to play its part of the agreement is going to work. We need to send the message that the United States can be relied upon. Australia and our partners are watching. President xi is watching. Thousands of americans employed in shipyards would build these submarines and benefit from the australian contributions to support and expand our submarine infrastructure are watching. I hope our witnesses will help us understand why both pillars will improve the National Security interests of the United States, australia, and the United Kingdom. Because based on mission requirements, the United States and australia need the submarines faster than currently being produced. I think it would be helpful if you could quote clarify how you would go to make 1. 4 million subs a year to three subs a year. I hope that you could said some shed some light on that perspective, what will the steel mean for our alliance and what is the cost of an action. Finally, secretary lewis, as we codevelop advanced the terry technologies with australia, are proprietary products will be safe from chinese espionage. While this approach does require changes to export controls to protect military technology and the military technology that we developed through this new partnership. On the support of the codevelopment of advanced military technology which will include streamlining controls around the partners. I do not want this to be used by a trojan horse to undermine u. S. Export controls for the sake of commercial and industrial interests that are unrelated. It should be about modernizing historic alliances with two of our closest partners who have fought alongside the United States the fence in defense of democracy and freedom. Sen. Risch thank you and i will associate myself with those remarks about how important this is and we are anxious to see it move forward, and certainly, there have been some disappointment so far. That does not mean we cannot do better in the future. And that is the purpose of this hearing, to get this thing on track and move it more quickly and efficiently. As the United States enters into a period of strategic strategic rivalry with china, that include military competition. China has undertaken a Nuclear Breakout and fields Worlds Largest navy and modernized airports. We must move quickly to expand resilience and Industrial Base. The u. S. Should be allies and this partnership is the first step. The defense trade partnership is meant to bolster collaboration and joint advanced military capabilities. In particular our goals include increased Technology Sharing, codevelopment and expedited export licensing processes. I want to focus on australias acquisition of conventionally Armed Nuclear submarines. This is bold, essential, and contingent on supply and unlikely to improve the increase of submarine capabilities. Many of the capabilities needed to fully implement this including cruise missiles, combat said stem systems or computing capabilities will be heavily dependent on pillar two. This offers the potential to produce full meaningful results this decade and we could also build resilience across the supply chain in a period, given the lingering impact of covid and the exposure of u. S. Weakness following the invasion of ukraine. The export business treats our closest allies as if they were the new or emerging partners. Australia and the United Kingdom have legal and Regulatory Technology control regimes comparable to the United States. Demands that the australia and the u. K. Undertake reform is rankly condescending and highlights the need for a change in the attitude of defense cooperation with allies. I appreciate not want to open the doors to a trojan horse. I have served on this committee for 15 years now that i have been in the senate. At the same time i served on the intelligence committee. I would like to report to this committee, one of the very first things ive noticed between the two, is that there is a very distinct difference between the way we treat allies in intelligence field versus how we treat them on other things like export. And, i think, probably it would burn who behoove the state and department of defense spent some time with the intelligence community. We send sensitive and important material with the five is. Here, i do not have the concerns that some have. As far as the chairman is concerned, i am using this as a trojan horse, it certainly does deserve attention. But having said that, there might be an overreach. I think that we really ought to take a deep breath, and sit down and review how we could reconcile how we treat our allies in intelligence field, and make it more compatible with how we treat them in trade and industrial matters. The department of state, the department of defense and commerce should clearly communicate our requirements to ensure Robust Technology and export control measures and then adhere to them. In addition the agencies should reduce queries with the governments and the partners of United Kingdom and australia. If this lies is its potential incentivize similar agreements with other close allies. We need to get this right before we add other partners. These agreements are necessary if we are to prevail in the long term competition with china, russia, and their partners. If this fails to achieve its goals, it would not only show us as an unreliable ally put say we are fundamentally unserious about competing with china. Chair menendez let us turn to our witnesses. It is my privilege to welcome back the secretary for military affairs, jessica lewis. Prior to this, she served as a democratic staff director for five years, the most glorious years of her career. From 2007 to 2014, she was the national guaranteed National Security adviser to harry reid. We also welcome assistant secretary of defense for strategy and capabilities, dr. Marla carlin karlin. She is now working for her six secretary of defense where she has advised the department on policy, strategic planning, budgeting, future conflicts and security affairs. She has deviously performed the under second the under deputy of security and prior served as accurate acting secretary of defense affairs. We are pleased to welcome kin moy who has been serving as Principal Deputy and assistant secretary for asian and Asian Affairs is june 16. He has been in the Foreign Service for 29 years and his diplomatic stops include taipei, beijing and prior to this role, he was he acting assistant secretary of state in the bureau of intelligence and research. Welcome to you all and i would want thank the witnesses in their participation and their service to the country. The full statement will be included in the record without objection and i would ask you to summarize them so the committee can have a conversation with you. And then we will start off with assistant secretary lewis. Sec. Lewis thank you so much for the kind introduction. Ranking member risch and members of the community, i would like to thank you for the opportunity to testify today. Im excited to talk about the role of the state department. One of this administrations hallmark National Security and Foreign Policy initiatives. I want to start, first, by thanking the chairman, Ranking Member, an entire committee for your leadership role in making this possible. Through your support for the legislation passed by this committee and the state authorization act and much of which was included in the Defense Authorization act passed in july. I want to give an overview and then discuss legislation and interim plan we are putting in place. One month ago, i was with secretary blinken and secretary austin as they met with their australian counterparts. During our time, our leaders emphasized that aukus is a transformational initiative, perhaps the best in a generation. By matter modernizing, this will strengthen our defense, enhance deterrents and contribute to peace in the Indo Pacific Region and beyond. It comprises of two pillars, one we are working to provide australia with Nuclear Armed capability as soon as possible, we are partnering with australia and u. K. To develop advanced capabilities based on emerging technologies that are nation possessions. We have made significant progress on both pillars. In march 2023, the United States, australia and the United Kingdom announced a pathway to give australia a conventionally Armed Nuclear submarine capabilities. Modernizing the submarine fleet be a long term, multidecade undertaking and partners are moving forward to implement this approach. On pillar two, as recent experiments have demonstrated, we are leveraging the collective power of our Industrial Base to create a trilateral equals ecosystem that combines the competitive and comparative advantages of each nathan nation to strengthen joint capabilities. Let me turn to legislation. As was noted by the chairman and Ranking Member, for aukus to succeed you need to enable secure technology and information sharing between our countries. Earlier the administration submitted a legislative proposal to congress, and as i said we are great role to this committee to ensure that it was brought with bipartisan support and the substance was included in the national Defense Authorization bill. We look forward to working with congress and hoping that this final bill shows what we intend to deliver to the promise of aukus. Under the language, most defense items will move forward without eating a license. Improved entities within approve entities will be able to move items or retransfer without authorization. This approach will ensure that aukus pillar two can fulfill its True Potential while maintaining safeguards of the crown jewels of our defense technologies. While the legislation is being worked on, the department of state is lamenting a novel use of existing authorities to expedite and authorize Technology Sharing. The state departments authorization mechanism is an interim solution to streamline until authorization is enacted. We will continue to work closely with congress as we finalize our approach. We are also working with our stallion and british counterparts to offer equal opportunity and access to american firms within aukus efforts in alignment with our respective relations and International Trade obligations. We have a stake in the success of aukus. Australia and the United Kingdom are two of our proudest allies and we are proud to stand shoulder by shoulder as we strengthen our Longstanding Alliance and implement the partnership. I look forward to working with this committee and congress to promote Agile Defense trades between and among the aukus partners. Chair menendez secretary moy . Sec. Moy chairman and Ranking Member, thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. Almost two years ago, President Biden, and the leaders of australia and the united system announced the creation of a trilateral partnership. Period aukus is a modernization of our longstanding partnerships to address security challenges of the future and support peace, prosperity and stability. Aukus deepens our Diplomatic Security and defense cooperation in line with President Bidens vision of working with allies and partners. It enhances United States security, that of our allies and partners and contributes to global peace and security. Much work has been done to realize this commitment. On march 13 as the assistant secretary noted, President Biden, and the australian and u. K. Prime minister announced a pathway for Nuclear Powered submarines. They are pursuing a multiphased approach with the goal to deliver submarine capability to australia at the earliest possible date. Under pillar two you to scope a variety of advanced capabilities and ensure that Defense Export systems are ready to meet this challenge. These commitments have critical implications for Foreign Policy and National Security. This is a critical effort to advance implementation of the National Security defense and indo pacific strategies. With the goal of advancing a free and open, connected, secure, and resilience prospering in the pacific. Aukus supports our vision of a world that is stable and prosperous where countries thrive, trades, and collaborate to address shared challenges and where all countries are empowered to make their own sovereign decisions. A free and open indo pacific is vital for security and post and prosperity which is why we need cooperation now. Like our other partners, these partners understand the Critical Role this trades this has in trade and prosperity. Economic growth requires prosperity and predictability, things that aukus seeks to provide their enhance deterrents and security. We have contributed a financial role for the last 70 years. Aukus is a complete, a complete commitment to strengthening these partnerships by strengthening partners in europe and asia, recognizing that the world is increasingly interconnected and the security of all regions and here at home in the United States are all linked. It reflects the Critical Role that both are european ended up with send indo Pacific Partners will have for enhancing peace and security in the pacific and around the world. Aukus will bolster the security of the United States to the development of cuttingedge edge defense and Security Capabilities but also by ensuring that the allied that are allies contribute to our own security and shared interest as a modernized the terry capabilities. It is more than submarines and defense projects, it is a general generational commitment to strengthen cooperation to meet the many chal