S. 4600

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4600 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4600

To require a South China Sea diplomatic engagement strategy, and for 
other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

May 20, 2026

Ms. Duckworth (for herself and Mr. Curtis) introduced the following 
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To require a South China Sea diplomatic engagement strategy, and for 
other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``South China Sea Strategy Act of 
2026''.

SEC. 2. UNITED STATES POLICY.

It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to support the importance of the freedom of navigation, 
overflight, and unfettered commerce in the South China Sea, in 
a manner consistent with international law to preserve United 
States economic interests in the region;
(2) to commit to a rules-based approach to resolving 
maritime disputes;
(3) to counter efforts by the People's Republic of China 
(PRC) to unilaterally change the status quo and treat the South 
China Sea as its unilateral dominion, undermining regional 
stability and contravening the PRC's prior commitments to 
resolve disputes peacefully and through appropriate legal 
venues; and
(4) to engage with allies and partners in a concerted, 
coordinated manner to support a strategic, consistent approach 
to diplomatic engagement on issues and crises that arise that 
affect United States interests in the South China Sea, 
including to ensure the safety of United States citizens in the 
region.

SEC. 3. SOUTH CHINA SEA DIPLOMATIC ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY.

(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall, in consultation 
with the Secretary of Defense, submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees a Strategy for Diplomatic Engagement on the South China Sea 
to ensure that the United States Government is operating in a smart, 
strategic direction in line with United States interests to maximize 
our efficient engagement on South China Sea matters.
(b) Elements.--The Strategy listed in subsection (a) shall--
(1) describe the overarching goals of United States 
engagement with littoral states, allies, and partners on 
security, diplomatic, legal, and economic matters in the South 
China Sea;
(2) designate an office tasked with lead responsibility for 
coordinating execution of each goal described in paragraph (1);
(3) analyze the successes of the Department of State's 
existing mechanisms, programs, and forums for advancing United 
States goals in the South China Sea through bilateral, 
multilateral, subnational, civil society, and private sector 
avenues with littoral states, allies, and partners, and 
identifies gaps in engagement;
(4) detail plans to deepen bilateral engagement with each 
littoral state around pressures, threats and opportunities in 
the South China Sea identified as priorities in previous 
bilateral engagements;
(5) detail plans to convene and increase the frequency of 
collective engagements with littoral states, including 
additional allies and partners as appropriate, around themes of 
shared importance, including--
(A) bolstering defense capabilities;
(B) reinforcing maritime law enforcement capacity 
and governance;
(C) responding to grey-zone tactics, including 
coordinated illegal, unreported, and unregulated 
fishing;
(D) managing maritime territorial disputes to 
reducing the likelihood of security crises and 
conflicts;
(E) preparing crisis management and response 
mechanisms to avoid potential actions that could 
unnecessarily provoke or exacerbate a volatile or tense 
situation;
(F) building resilience to foreign malign influence 
and interference;
(G) supporting economic development and resilience 
to economic coercion; and
(H) addressing additional factors assessed by the 
Secretary to be causing a direct risk to the United 
States national interests in the South China Sea; and
(6) detail plans for coordination with the interagency and 
foreign governments to address crisis management for scenarios 
short of war that would require heightened interagency and 
international engagement.
(c) Classification.--The strategy submitted under subsection (a) 
shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified 
annex.

SEC. 4. STRATEGY EXECUTION.

(a) Identification of Necessary Programs and Resources.--Not later 
than 360 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of State shall identify and submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees any necessary program, policy, or budgetary 
resources required to support implementation of the Strategy for 
Diplomatic Engagement on the South China Sea for fiscal years 2027, 
2028, and 2029.
(b) Briefing.--Not later than 30 days after the submission of the 
assessment described in subsection (a), the Secretary of State shall 
brief the appropriate congressional committees on the implementation of 
the Strategy for Diplomatic Engagement on the South China Sea.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
of Representatives.
(2) Littoral states.--The term ``littoral states'' means--
(A) Brunei;
(B) Indonesia;
(C) Malaysia;
(D) the Philippines; and
(E) Vietnam.
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