Duckworth, Rounds Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen Cyber Operations in Indo-Pacific Region

Duckworth, Rounds Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen Cyber Operations in Indo-Pacific Region

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)-a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC)-and Mike Rounds (R-SD) introduced bipartisan legislation to close strategy and resource gaps in the Department of Defense's (DoD) cyber cooperation activities in the Indo-Pacific region. The Indo-Pacific Cyber Cooperation Strategy would require the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to institutionalize cyber cooperation between DoD and the United States' allies in the region.

"Cybersecurity is key to a free and open Indo-Pacific, strengthening our national security and keeping us all safe," said Duckworth. "As a Pacific nation, we must ensure we're strategically engaging with our regional partners across all fronts to make sure they can protect critical infrastructure and effectively operate in cyberspace. Our bipartisan bill would enhance American cyber cooperation with Indo-Pacific allies and partners to better protect our economy and security from shared adversaries and hostile actors."

"Modern warfare is now fought in five domains: air, land, sea, space and cyberspace," said Rounds. "As our cyber capabilities continue to advance, so do those of our adversaries. As China grows increasingly capable in the cyber domain, the United States must leverage the capacity of our partners and allies, who are crucial for securing a free and open Indo-Pacific. Our legislation would require the Department of War to close any existing cyber operations gaps that exist between our nation and our allies in the Indo-Pacific Region."

Full text of the bill is available on Senator Duckworth's website.

Duckworth continues to be a proven leader when it comes to strengthening coordination with our Indo-Pacific partners to promote security in the region. Last week, she introduced bipartisan legislation to improve our nation's capabilities to counter the People's Republic of China's (PRC) "gray-zone" intimidation and coercion tactics in the Indo-Pacific. Last month, Duckworth became first U.S. Senator to visit Taiwan since the disastrous Trump-Xi summit where Donald Trump kowtowed to People's Republic of China (PRC) President Xi Jinping and waffled on delivering a critical bipartisan arms package to Taiwan. Upon her arrival, Duckworth penned an op-ed underscoring that the United States' commitment to Taiwan is steadfast-regardless of who is in the White House. She also made an official visit to Japan during the same trip to strengthen economic ties between our nations, specifically in Illinois, so our nations' trade ties can remain resilient despite PRC gray-zone activities.

Duckworth is leading numerous additional pieces of legislation that would help our military readiness with Indo-Pacific partners, including through her bipartisan Strategy for Crisis Management Act and South China Sea Strategy Act that both recently passed committee and now await a full Senate vote. Her Strategy for Crisis Management Act was one of several provisions she secured in this year's committee-passed NDAA to enhance our readiness and coordination with partners in the Indo-Pacific region. This provision would help deescalate consequential crises short of war in the South China Sea. Among Duckworth's other wins are provisions that would drive cooperation with Indo-Pacific allies and partners on asymmetric operations and improve medical preparedness and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.

-30-