Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5681) to provide for the approval of the Amendment to the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for Cooperation on the Uses of Atomic Energy for Mutual Defense Purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5681
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. APPROVAL OF THE AMENDMENT TO THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND FOR COOPERATION ON THE USES OF ATOMIC ENERGY FOR MUTUAL DEFENSE PURPOSES.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding the provisions for congressional consideration of a proposed agreement for cooperation in subsection d. of section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2153), the amendments to the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for Cooperation on the Uses of Atomic Energy for Mutual Defense Purposes, done at Washington, July 22, 2014, and transmitted to Congress on July 24, 2014, including all portions thereof (hereinafter in this section referred to as the ``Amendment''), may be brought into effect on or after the date of the enactment of this Act as if all the requirements in such section 123 for consideration of the Amendment had been satisfied, subject to subsection (b) of this section.
(b) Applicability of Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and Other Provisions of Law.--Upon coming into effect, the Amendment shall be subject to the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) and any other applicable United States law as if the Amendment had come into effect in accordance with the requirements of section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
GENERAL LEAVE
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I will share with the Members here that I rise in strong support of this legislation to extend for another 10 years the United States-United Kingdom Mutual Defense Agreement. This agreement has governed our nuclear cooperation with the United Kingdom for 50 years.
As always, I appreciate the cooperation of our ranking member, Mr. Engel of New York, for bringing this legislation to the floor. By acting today, we will ensure that this vital cooperation with Great Britain continues uninterrupted.
Mr. Speaker, the United States has no closer ally than the United Kingdom. We all know that. Our societies are founded on a shared belief in freedom and universal human rights. As a result, our close consultation on major foreign policy issues has long been routine; and coordinated action, frankly, is the norm between us and the U.K. We share an unprecedented defense relationship. The advantage of that is it has helped us secure our shared interests and values since the World Wars of the last century. We have fought side by side in conflicts from World War I to Afghanistan. Today, we have joined forces, along with other partners, to battle ISIL. Our intelligence cooperation is unique.
We are both founding members of NATO. We have shouldered a disproportionate share of the burden in NATO. We do that because we understand that the world remains a very dangerous place, but also because we know if we do not do so and we do not lead, no one else will.
Our cooperation on defense includes a unique partnership on nuclear security. This Mutual Defense Agreement is the framework through which this partnership takes place. It enables the exchange of nuclear materials, technology, and information that has been renewed many times. Actually, this goes back to 1958. The bill that we will renew here will take it for another decade to ensure that our full cooperation on defense can continue uninterrupted.
So I urge my colleagues to support the bill to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to the United Kingdom: a friend, a partner and enduring ally.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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