That the Senate—
expresses sincere concern over the environmental, economic, and humanitarian threats to the Mekong River and the communities of the Mekong River and continued support to counter those threats; and
declares it is the policy of the United States Government to—
through the Mekong-United States Partnership and the Friends of the Mekong, promote the economic and environmental well-being of the people of Mainland Southeast Asia in the 5 countries through which the Mekong River flows, namely, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam;
support a whole-of-government approach in providing and coordinating Federal aid and assistance throughout the Mekong River Basin under the Mekong-United States Partnership, including programmatic support provided by the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development, and other Federal agencies;
contribute to the development of quality infrastructure, the development of national electricity markets, cross-border energy trade, the facilitation of cross-border transport, renewable and clean energy acceleration and deployment, the development of micro, small, and medium enterprises, agriculture, transportation, the facilitation of trade and investment, strengthened subregional production linkages and supply chains, digital infrastructure, and the digital economy in the Mekong River Basin;
promote engagement and buy-in of the United States private sector to support the long-term inclusive economic growth, resilience, global health, education, and sustainable development of the region;
leverage the expertise of the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, and other partners in high-quality infrastructure to support the economic development needs of the countries in the Mekong River Basin;
support the development of quality infrastructure, including through projects financed by the United States International Development Finance Corporation, in the countries in the Mekong River Basin;
encourage all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to view the environmental, humanitarian, and economic threats to the Mekong River as a danger to the entire region;
promote sustainable water use, natural resources management, and environmental conservation and protection, including—
through support for a technically sound, well-coordinated, and consensus-based approach to managing the shared resources of the Mekong River Basin;
through support for environmental conservation, protection, and resilience in the Mekong subregion; and
by enhancing the capacity of countries in the Mekong River Basin in the sustainable conservation and management of natural resources, including fishery resources, for sustainable food security;
continue the important work that provides vital data and monitoring to the people and governments of the Mekong River;
support the development of the capacity of the region to respond to a variety of threats, including countering transnational crime such as trafficking of drugs, wildlife, timber, and persons, and criminal activity associated with illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and to improve health security, including emergency preparedness and response for pandemics and epidemics, cybersecurity, and disaster response and preparedness and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief;
promote the development of human capital through education, medical and laboratory research and development, vocational training, youth empowerment, women’s economic empowerment, gender equality, university cooperation, and educational and professional exchanges;
work together with countries in the Mekong River Basin to combat the impacts of climate change and support the resiliency of those countries;
encourage all countries in the Mekong River Basin to provide timely early warning for natural and unnatural operations of the river;
support freedom of expression in the countries in the Mekong River Basin through promoting independent journalism and the freedom to access information;
continue to call for the cessation of violence in Burma and support the return of Burma to a path of inclusive democracy, so that it can fully contribute to regional development;
prioritize the strengthening of people-to-people ties through United States exchange programs such as the Fulbright Program, the Peace Corps, the International Visitors Leadership Program, and the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative Program, including the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative Academy at Fulbright University Vietnam; and
recognize that strong democratic institutions, the protection of human rights, independent civil society, and free and fair elections are central to implementing the shared vision of a Mekong River region, and an Indo-Pacific region, that is free, open, secure, prosperous, and sustainable.