II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4741 

To encourage increased trade and investment between the United States 

and the countries in the Western Balkans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 2, 2022 

Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself, Mr. WICKER, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. 

CARDIN, and Mr. VAN HOLLEN) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To encourage increased trade and investment between the 

United States and the countries in the Western Balkans, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 4. Defined term. 


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Sec. 5. Codification of sanctions relating to the Western Balkans. 

Sec. 6. Democratic and economic development and prosperity initiatives. 

Sec. 7. Countering malign influence and promoting cross-cultural engagement. 

Sec. 8. Peace Corps in the Western Balkans. 

Sec. 9. Balkans Youth Leadership Initiative. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The six countries of the Western Balkans 

4 (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Monte5 negro, North Macedonia, and Serbia) form a plural6 istic, multi-ethnic region in the heart of Europe that 

7 is critical to Europe’s peace, stability, and pros8 perity. 

9 (2) Continued peace, stability, and prosperity in 

10 the Western Balkans is directly tied to opportunities 

11 for democratic and economic advancement available 

12 to the citizens and residents of those six countries. 

13 (3) It is in the mutual interest of the United 

14 States and the six countries of the Western Balkans 

15 to promote stable and sustainable economic growth 

16 and development in the region. 

17 (4) The reforms and integration with the Euro18 pean Union pursued by countries in the Western 

19 Balkans have led to significant democratic and eco20 nomic progress in the region. 

21 (5) Despite economic progress, rates of poverty 

22 and unemployment in the Western Balkans remain 


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1 higher than in neighboring European Union coun2 tries. 

3 (6) Out-migration, particularly of youth, is af4 fecting demographics in every country in the West5 ern Balkans, resulting in negative population growth 

6 in all six countries. 

7 (7) Creating a welcoming environment for in8 vestment and creating employment opportunities in 

9 the Western Balkans, especially for youth, can pro10 vide powerful tools for economic development and for 

11 encouraging broader participation in a political proc12 ess that increases prosperity for all. 

13 (8) Offering opportunities for inclusive, trans14 parent economic growth and merit-based employ15 ment to people living in the Western Balkans will 

16 encourage higher levels of trade and direct invest17 ment and support positive economic and political de18 velopments occurring throughout the region. 

19 (9) Existing regional economic efforts, such as 

20 the Common Regional Market and the Open Bal21 kans initiative, have great potential to improve the 

22 economic conditions in the Western Balkans, while 

23 promoting inclusion and transparency. 

24 (10) The Department of Commerce, through its 

25 Foreign Commercial Service, plays an important role 


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1 in promoting and facilitating opportunities for 

2 United States trade and investment. 

3 (11) Corruption continues to plague the West4 ern Balkans and represents one of the greatest im5 pediments to further economic and political develop6 ment in the region. 

7 (12) Disinformation campaigns targeting the 

8 Western Balkans threaten the credibility of Western 

9 democratic institutions, the integrity of national 

10 elections, and the response to COVID–19. 

11 (13) Corruption and disinformation proliferate 

12 in political environments marked by autocratic con13 trol or partisan conflict. 

14 (14) Dependence on Russian sources of natural 

15 gas for the countries of the Western Balkans ties 

16 their economies and politics to the Russian Federa17 tion and inhibits their aspirations for European inte18 gration. 

19 (15) The Western Balkans reliance on fossil 

20 fuels for energy sources causes damage to the envi21 ronment and to human health, while inhibiting eco22 nomic development in the region. 

23 (16) Reducing the Western Balkans’ reliance on 

24 Russian natural gas supplies and fossil fuels is in 

25 the national interest of the United States. 


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1 (17) China’s growing influence in the Western 

2 Balkans could also have a deleterious impact on 

3 strategic competition, democracy, and economic inte4 gration with Europe. 

5 (18) The United States International Develop6 ment Finance Corporation plays an important role 

7 in the pursuit of United States policy goals focused 

8 on economic development. 

9 (19) In March 2022, the President launched 

10 the European Democratic Resilience Initiative to 

11 bolster democratic resilience, advance anti-corruption 

12 efforts, and defend human rights in Ukraine and its 

13 neighbors in response Russia’s war of aggression. 

14 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

15 It is the sense of Congress that the United States 

16 should— 

17 (1) encourage increased trade and investment 

18 between the United States and allies and partners in 

19 the Western Balkans; 

20 (2) expand United States assistance to regional 

21 integration efforts in the Western Balkans; 

22 (3) strengthen and expand regional economic 

23 integration in the Western Balkans, especially enter24 prises owned by and employing women and youth; 


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1 (4) work with allies and partners committed to 

2 improving the rule of law, energy resource diver3 sification, democratic and economic reform, and the 

4 eradication of poverty in the Western Balkans; 

5 (5) increase United States trade and investment 

6 with the Western Balkans, particularly in ways 

7 that— 

8 (A) decrease dependence on Russian en9 ergy sources and fossil fuels; 

10 (B) increase energy diversification, effi11 ciency, and conservation; and 

12 (C) facilitate the transition to cleaner and 

13 more reliable sources of energy, including re14 newables; 

15 (6) facilitate the development of strong civil so16 cieties, independent media, transparent, accountable, 

17 citizen-responsive governance, and political stability 

18 in the Western Balkans; 

19 (7) support the expeditious accession of the 

20 countries in the Western Balkans to the European 

21 Union and to the North Atlantic Treaty Organiza22 tion (NATO) for those that desire membership; 

23 (8) support— 

24 (A) maintaining the full European Union 

25 Force (EUFOR) mandate in Bosnia and 


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1 Herzegovina as being in the national security 

2 interests of the United States; 

3 (B) encouraging NATO and the European 

4 Union to review their mission mandates and 

5 posture in Bosnia and Herzegovina to ensure 

6 they are playing a proactive role in establishing 

7 a safe and secure environment, particularly the 

8 defense environment; 

9 (C) using the voice of the United States in 

10 NATO to encourage alliance planning and sup11 port of an international military force to main12 tain a safe and secure environment in Bosnia 

13 and Herzegovina, especially if Russia blocks re14 authorization of the mission in the United Na15 tions; and 

16 (D) a strengthened NATO headquarters in 

17 Sarajevo; 

18 (9) continue security cooperation with Albania, 

19 Montenegro, and North Macedonia through the aus20 pices of NATO and through continued bilateral co21 operation; 

22 (10) continue to support Montenegro’s ongoing 

23 accession negotiations with the European Union, in24 cluding by providing assistance to Montenegro to 


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1 help the country promptly meet European Union 

2 membership criteria; 

3 (11) continue to support North Macedonia’s 

4 and Albania’s applications for European Union 

5 membership by supporting improvement of their re6 spective abilities to meet democracy benchmarks re7 quired for accession; 

8 (12) continue to support Bosnia and 

9 Herzegovina’s pursuit of European Union candidate 

10 status by encouraging meaningful advancement of 

11 its reform agenda; 

12 (13) continue to support the cultural heritage, 

13 and recognize the languages of the Western Balkans; 

14 (14) coordinate closely with the European 

15 Union, the United Kingdom, and other allies and 

16 partners on sanctions designations and work to align 

17 efforts as much as possible to demonstrate a clear 

18 commitment to upholding democratic values; 

19 (15) expand bilateral security cooperation with 

20 non-NATO member Balkan countries, particularly 

21 efforts focused on regional integration and coopera22 tion, including through the Adriatic Charter, done at 

23 Tirana May 2, 2003; 

24 (16) increase efforts to combat Russian 

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1 stabilizing, or disruptive activities targeting the 

2 Western Balkans through engagement with govern3 ment institutions, political stakeholders, journalists, 

4 civil society organizations, and industry leaders; 

5 (17) articulate clearly and unambiguously the 

6 United States commitment to supporting democratic 

7 values and respect for international law as the sole 

8 path forward for the countries of the Western Bal9 kans; and 

10 (18) support the mission of the Peace Corps to 

11 promote world peace and friendship by helping the 

12 people of interested countries to meet their need for 

13 trained men and women, which provides an invalu14 able opportunity to connect the American people 

15 with the people of the Western Balkans. 

16 SEC. 4. DEFINED TERM. 

17 In this Act, the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com18 mittees’’ means— 

19 (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 

20 Senate; 

21 (2) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

22 Senate; 

23 (3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

24 House of Representatives; and 


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1 (4) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

2 House of Representatives. 

3 SEC. 5. CODIFICATION OF SANCTIONS RELATING TO THE 

4 WESTERN BALKANS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The United States sanctions im6 posed through the Executive orders specified in subsection 

7 (b) relating to obstructing the Dayton Accords and cor8 ruption, including all sanctions imposed with respect to 

9 persons under such Executive orders as of the date of the 

10 enactment of this Act, shall remain in effect, except as 

11 provided in subsection (c). 

12 (b) EXECUTIVE ORDERS SPECIFIED.—The Executive 

13 orders specified in this subsection are— 

14 (1) Executive Order 13219 (50 U.S.C. 1701 

15 note; relating to blocking property of persons who 

16 threaten international stabilization efforts in the 

17 Western Balkans), as amended before and in effect 

18 on the date of the enactment of this Act; and 

19 (2) Executive Order 14033 (50 U.S.C. 1701 

20 note; relating to blocking property and suspending 

21 entry into the United States of certain persons con22 tributing to the destabilizing situation in the West23 ern Balkans), as in effect on such date of enact24 ment. 


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1 (c) TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.—The President 

2 may terminate the application of sanctions described in 

3 subsection (a) with respect to a person if the President 

4 certifies to the appropriate congressional committees 

5 that— 

6 (1) such person— 

7 (A) is not engaging in the activity that was 

8 the basis for such sanctions; or 

9 (B) has taken significant verifiable steps 

10 toward stopping such activity; and 

11 (2) the President has received reliable assur12 ances that such person will not knowingly engage in 

13 activity subject to such sanctions in the future. 

14 SEC. 6. DEMOCRATIC AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND 

15 PROSPERITY INITIATIVES. 

16 (a) ANTI-CORRUPTION INITIATIVE.—The Secretary 

17 of State, through ongoing and new programs, shall develop 

18 an initiative that— 

19 (1) seeks to expand technical assistance for the 

20 development of national anti-corruption strategies to 

21 each country of the Western Balkans, or for the sup22 port of national anti-corruption strategies already 

23 created, taking into account local conditions and 

24 contingent on the agreement of the host country 

25 government; 


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1 (2) seeks to share best practices with, and pro2 vide training to, law enforcement agencies and judi3 cial institutions, and other relevant administrative 

4 bodies, in countries in the region to improve the effi5 ciency, transparency, and accountability of such 

6 agencies and institutions; 

7 (3) provides support to combat political corrup8 tion, particularly in campaign finance, and to 

9 strengthen regulatory and legislative oversight of 

10 critical governance areas, such as freedom of infor11 mation and public procurement; and 

12 (4) includes the Western Balkans in the Euro13 pean Democratic Resilience Initiative, and considers 

14 the region as a recipient of anti-corruption funding 

15 for such initiative. 

16 (b) PRIORITIZING REGIONAL TRADE AND ECONOMIC

17 COMPETITIVENESS.— 

18 (1) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

19 Congress that— 

20 (A) promoting stronger economic, civic, 

21 and political relationships among the countries 

22 in the Western Balkans will enable such coun23 tries to better utilize existing resources and 

24 maximize their economic security and resilience 


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1 by increasing trade in goods and services 

2 among other countries in the region; and 

3 (B) United States investments in and as4 sistance toward creating a more integrated re5 gion ensures political stability and security for 

6 the region. 

7 (2) COMPREHENSIVE, 5-YEAR STRATEGY FOR

8 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND DEMOCRATIC RESIL9 IENCE IN THE WESTERN BALKANS.—Not later than 

10 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

11 the Secretary of State and the Administrator of the 

12 United States Agency for International Develop13 ment, in coordination with the Secretary of the 

14 Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Chief 

15 Executive Officer of the United States International 

16 Development Finance Corporation, shall submit to 

17 the appropriate congressional committees a regional 

18 economic development and democratic resilience 

19 strategy for the Western Balkans that— 

20 (A) considers the full set of tools and re21 sources available from the agencies overseen by 

22 such Federal officials; 

23 (B) includes efforts to ensure coordination 

24 with multilateral and bilateral partners, such as 


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1 the European Union, the World Bank, and 

2 other relevant assistance frameworks; 

3 (C) includes an initial public assessment 

4 of— 

5 (i) economic opportunities for which 

6 United States businesses, or those of other 

7 like-minded partners, would be competitive; 

8 (ii) legal, economic, governance, 

9 infrastructural, or other barriers limiting 

10 United States investment in the Western 

11 Balkans; 

12 (iii) the effectiveness of existing re13 gional cooperation initiatives, such as the 

14 Open Balkan initiative and the Western 

15 Balkans Common Regional Market; and 

16 (iv) ways to increase United States 

17 trade in the Western Balkans; 

18 (D) develops human and institutional ca19 pacity and infrastructure across multiple sec20 tors of economies, including clean energy, en21 ergy efficiency, agriculture, small and medium22 sized enterprise development, health, and cyber23 security; 


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1 (E) assists with the development and im2 plementation of regional and international trade 

3 agreements; 

4 (F) supports women-owned enterprises and 

5 gender equality; 

6 (G) promotes government policies that 

7 combat corruption and encourage transparency, 

8 free and fair competition, sound governance, ju9 dicial reform, environmental protection, and 

10 business environments conducive to sustainable 

11 and inclusive economic growth; and 

12 (H) includes a public diplomacy strategy 

13 that describes the actions that will be taken by 

14 relevant agencies to ensure that populations in 

15 the Western Balkans are aware of the develop16 ment activities of the United States Govern17 ment. 

18 (3) BRIEFING.—Not later than 90 days after 

19 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

20 of State shall provide a briefing for the appropriate 

21 congressional committees that describes the progress 

22 made towards developing the strategy required 

23 under paragraph (2). 

24 (c) REGIONAL TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT INITIA25 TIVE.— 


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1 (1) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of State 

2 and the Administrator of the United States Agency 

3 for International Development, in coordination with 

4 the Chief Executive Officer of the United States 

5 International Development Finance Corporation and 

6 the Secretary of Commerce, is authorized to coordi7 nate a regional trade and development initiative in 

8 accordance with this subsection. 

9 (2) INITIATIVE ELEMENTS.—The initiative au10 thorized under paragraph (1) shall— 

11 (A) promote private sector growth and 

12 competitiveness and increase the capacity of 

13 businesses, particularly small and medium-sized 

14 enterprises; 

15 (B) aim to increase interregional exports 

16 to other countries in the Balkans and neigh17 boring countries and European Union member 

18 states; 

19 (C) aim to increase United States exports 

20 to and investments in countries in the Balkans; 

21 (D) support startup companies by pro22 viding training in business skills and leadership, 

23 providing opportunities to connect to sources of 

24 capital, and by encouraging startup companies 

25 that are led by youth or women; 


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1 (E) encourage and promote inward and 

2 outward investment through engagement with 

3 the Western Balkans diaspora community in 

4 the United States and abroad; 

5 (F) assist governments to develop— 

6 (i) regulations to ensure fair and ef7 fective investment; and 

8 (ii) screening tools to identify and 

9 deter malign investments and other coer10 cive economic practices; 

11 (G) review existing assistance program12 ming across Federal agencies— 

13 (i) to eliminate duplication; and 

14 (ii) to identify areas of coordination 

15 within the Balkans region, which shall in16 clude the 6 Western Balkans countries and 

17 any country that shares a border with any 

18 of such countries; 

19 (H) identify areas where application of ad20 ditional resources could expand successful pro21 grams to 1 or more countries in the region by 

22 building on the existing experience and program 

23 architecture; 


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1 (I) compare existing single-country sector 

2 analyses to determine areas of focus that would 

3 benefit from a regional approach; and 

4 (J) promote intraregional trade through— 

5 (i) programming, including grants, co6 operative agreements, and other forms of 

7 assistance; 

8 (ii) expanding awareness of the avail9 ability of loans and other financial instru10 ments from the United States Government, 

11 including from the United States Inter12 national Development Finance Corporation 

13 and the Export-Import Bank of the United 

14 States; and 

15 (iii) coordinating access to existing 

16 trade instruments available through allies 

17 and partners in the region, including the 

18 European Union and international finan19 cial institutions. 

20 (3) SUPPORT FOR REGIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE

21 PROJECTS.—The initiative authorized under para22 graph (1), consistent with the BUILD Act of 2018 

23 (division F of Public Law 115–254) and the Euro24 pean Energy Security and Diversification Act of 

25 2019 (title XX of division P of Public Law 116–94), 


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1 should facilitate and prioritize support for regional 

2 infrastructure projects, including— 

3 (A) transportation projects that build 

4 roads, bridges, railways and other physical in5 frastructure to facilitate travel of goods and 

6 people throughout the Balkans region, particu7 larly interstate travel; 

8 (B) technical support and investments 

9 needed to meet United States and European 

10 Union standards for air travel, including 

11 screening and information sharing; 

12 (C) the development of telecommunications 

13 networks from trusted providers; 

14 (D) infrastructure projects that connect 

15 Western Balkan countries to each other and to 

16 countries with which they share a border; 

17 (E) the effective analysis of tenders and 

18 transparent procurement processes; 

19 (F) investment transparency programs 

20 that will help countries in the Western Balkans 

21 analyze gaps and establish institutional and 

22 regulatory reforms necessary— 

23 (i) to create an enabling environment 

24 for trade and investment; and 


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1 (ii) to strengthen protections against 

2 suspect investments through public pro3 curement and privatization and through 

4 foreign direct investments; 

5 (G) sharing best practices learned from the 

6 United States and other international partners 

7 to ensure that institutional and regulatory 

8 mechanisms for addressing these issues are fair, 

9 nonarbitrary, effective, and free from corrup10 tion; 

11 (H) projects that reduce reliance on fossil 

12 fuels and facilitate the transition to clean 

13 sources of energy; 

14 (I) technical assistance and generating pri15 vate investment in projects that promote 

16 connectivity and energy-sharing in the Western 

17 Balkans region; 

18 (J) technical assistance to support regional 

19 collaboration on environmental protection that 

20 includes governmental, political, civic, and busi21 ness stakeholders; and 

22 (K) technical assistance to develop financ23 ing options and help create linkages with poten24 tial financing institutions and investors. 

25 (4) LOANS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Amounts appropriated 

2 under the headings ‘‘Economic Support Fund’’ 

3 and ‘‘Assistance for Europe, Eurasia and Cen4 tral Asia’’ in any Act making appropriations for 

5 the Department of State, foreign operations, 

6 and related programs may be made available 

7 for the costs (as defined in section 502 of the 

8 Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 

9 661a)), of loan guarantees, including the cost of 

10 modifying loans and loan guarantees, for pro11 grams, projects, or activities in Albania, Bosnia 

12 and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North 

13 Macedonia, or Serbia, which are authorized to 

14 be provided. 

15 (B) CLASSIFICATION OF LOANS AND LOAN

16 GUARANTEES.—Amounts made available under 

17 subparagraph (A) for the costs of loans and 

18 loan guarantees, including the cost of modifying 

19 loans and loan guarantees, shall not be consid20 ered assistance for the purposes of any provi21 sions of law limiting assistance to a country. 

22 (C) CONSULTATION AND NOTIFICATION.— 

23 Amounts made available under this subsection 

24 shall be subject to— 


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1 (i) prior consultation with the appro2 priate congressional committees; and 

3 (ii) the regular notification procedures 

4 of the Committee on Appropriations of the 

5 Senate and the Committee on Appropria6 tions of the House of Representatives. 

7 (5) REQUIREMENTS.—All programming under 

8 the initiative authorized under paragraph (1) shall— 

9 (A) be open to the participation of all 6 

10 Western Balkan countries; 

11 (B) be consistent with European Union ac12 cession requirements; 

13 (C) be focused on retaining talent within 

14 the Western Balkans; 

15 (D) promote government policies in West16 ern Balkan countries that encourage free and 

17 fair competition, sound governance, environ18 mental protection, and business environments 

19 that are conducive to sustainable and inclusive 

20 economic growth; 

21 (E) include gender analysis and efforts to 

22 promote gender equity; and 

23 (F) include a public diplomacy strategy to 

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1 kan region about the initiative, including spe2 cific programs and projects. 

3 (d) UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

4 FINANCE CORPORATION.— 

5 (1) APPOINTMENTS.—Not later than 1 year 

6 after the date of the enactment of this Act, subject 

7 to the availability of appropriations, the Chief Exec8 utive Officer of the United States International De9 velopment Finance Corporation (referred to in this 

10 subsection as the ‘‘DFC’’), in collaboration with the 

11 Secretary of State, should take steps to ensure 

12 that— 

13 (A) a regional DFC office with responsibil14 ities for the Western Balkans is established in 

15 the region and is operational; and 

16 (B) sufficient full-time DFC employees, in17 cluding at least one permanent hire from the 

18 United States, are stationed in the office to 

19 serve United States interests in the Western 

20 Balkans. 

21 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 

22 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Chief Ex23 ecutive Officer of the DFC shall submit a report to 

24 the appropriate congressional committees that in25 cludes— 


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1 (A) a summary of the steps that have been 

2 taken to fulfill the requirements under para3 graph (1); 

4 (B) an account of any additional resources 

5 and authorities needed to complete the require6 ments under paragraph (1); and 

7 (C) a description of the initial outreach 

8 plan for the new regional DFC office. 

9 (3) JOINT REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

10 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

11 Chief Executive Officer of the DFC and the Admin12 istrator of the United States Agency for Inter13 national Development shall submit a joint report to 

14 the appropriate congressional committees that in15 cludes— 

16 (A) an assessment of the benefits of pro17 viding sovereign loan guarantees to countries in 

18 the Western Balkans to support infrastructure 

19 and energy diversification projects; 

20 (B) an outline of additional resources, such 

21 as tools, funding, and personnel, which may be 

22 required to offer sovereign loan guarantees; and 

23 (C) an assessment of how the DFC can de24 ploy its insurance products in support of bonds 


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1 or other instruments issued to raise capital 

2 through United States financial markets. 

3 SEC. 7. COUNTERING MALIGN INFLUENCE AND PRO4 MOTING CROSS-CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT. 

5 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that— 

7 (1) promoting university partnerships in the 

8 Western Balkans, particularly in traditionally under9 served communities, advances United States foreign 

10 policy goals and requires a whole of government ap11 proach, including the utilization of public-private 

12 partnerships; 

13 (2) such university partnerships will provide op14 portunities for exchanging academic ideas, technical 

15 expertise, research, and cultural understanding for 

16 the benefit of the United States; and 

17 (3) the six countries in the Western Balkans 

18 meet the requirements under section 105(c)(4) of 

19 the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 

20 2151c(c)(4)). 

21 (b) UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIPS.—The President, 

22 working through the Secretary of State, is authorized to 

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1 mote the establishment of university partnerships between 

2 the United States and the Western Balkans, including— 

3 (1) supporting research and analysis on foreign 

4 policy and disinformation; 

5 (2) working with partner governments to re6 form policies, improve curricula, strengthen data 

7 systems, train teachers, and provide quality, inclu8 sive learning materials; 

9 (3) providing individuals, particularly at-risk 

10 youth, women, people with disabilities, and other 

11 vulnerable, marginalized, or underserved commu12 nities, with relevant education, training, and skills 

13 for meaningful employment; 

14 (4) removing barriers to entering formal edu15 cation for out-of-school individuals, assisting such 

16 individuals to stay in school, and providing an op17 portunity for any individuals left behind to catch up 

18 on schooling; 

19 (5) promoting teaching and research exchanges 

20 between institutions of higher education in the West21 ern Balkans and in the United States; and 

22 (6) encouraging alliances and exchanges with 

23 like-minded institutions of education within the 

24 Western Balkans and the larger Europe continent. 


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1 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

3 necessary for each of the fiscal years 2023 through 2027 

4 to carry out this section. 

5 SEC. 8. PEACE CORPS IN THE WESTERN BALKANS. 

6 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con7 gress that— 

8 (1) the Peace Corps should be reinstated in the 

9 Western Balkans by reopening Peace Corps pro10 grams in as many Western Balkans countries as 

11 safely possible, including where the Peace Corps had 

12 previously operated, or has suspended operations due 

13 to the COVID–19 pandemic; 

14 (2) the Peace Corps should reopen its programs 

15 in as many of the Western Balkans countries as pos16 sible, including where the Peace Corps operated pre17 viously, but later suspended operations; and 

18 (3) the Peace Corps, whose mission is to pro19 mote world peace and friendship, in part by helping 

20 the people of interested countries in meeting their 

21 need for trained men and women, provides an in22 valuable opportunity to connect the people of the 

23 United States with the people of the Western Bal24 kans. 


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1 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

2 of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Peace 

3 Corps shall submit a report to the appropriate congres4 sional committees that includes— 

5 (1) an analysis of current opportunities for 

6 Peace Corps expansion in the Western Balkans re7 gion; and 

8 (2) a plan and timeline for implementing the 

9 outcomes described in subsection (a) to facilitate ex10 pansion of Peace Corps presence in the Western 

11 Balkans region, as appropriate. 

12 SEC. 9. BALKANS YOUTH LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE. 

13 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con14 gress that regular people-to-people exchange programs 

15 that bring religious leaders, journalists, civil society mem16 bers, politicians, and other people from the Western Bal17 kans to the United States will strengthen existing relation18 ships and advance United States interests and shared val19 ues in the Western Balkans region. 

20 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of State shall 

21 further develop and implement a program, to be known 

22 as the ‘‘Balkans Youth Leadership Initiative’’ (referred to 

23 in this section as ‘‘BOLD’’) that promotes educational and 

24 professional development for young adult leaders and pro25 fessionals in the Western Balkans who have demonstrated 


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1 a passion to contribute to the continued development of 

2 the region. 

3 (c) CONDUCT OF INITIATIVE.—BOLD shall seek— 

4 (1) to build the capacity of young Balkan lead5 ers in the Western Balkans in the areas of business 

6 and information technology, cyber security and 

7 digitization, agriculture, civic engagement, and pub8 lic administration; 

9 (2) to support young Balkan leaders by offering 

10 professional development, training, and networking 

11 opportunities, particularly in the areas of leadership, 

12 innovation, civic engagement, elections, human 

13 rights, entrepreneurship, good governance, and pub14 lic administration; 

15 (3) to support young political, parliamentary, 

16 and civic leaders in collaboration on regional initia17 tives related to good governance, environmental pro18 tection, government ethics, and minority inclusion; 

19 and 

20 (4) to provide increased economic and technical 

21 assistance to young Balkan leaders to promote eco22 nomic growth and strengthen ties between United 

23 States and Balkan businesses. 

24 (d) FELLOWSHIPS.—BOLD should award fellowships 

25 to young Balkans leaders who— 


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1 (1) are between 25 and 35 years of age; 

2 (2) have demonstrated strong capabilities in en3 trepreneurship, innovation, public service, and lead4 ership; 

5 (3) have had a positive impact in their commu6 nities, organizations, or institutions, including by 

7 promoting cross-regional and multiethnic coopera8 tion; and 

9 (4) represent a cross-section of gender, re10 gional, and ethnic diversity. 

11 (e) PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CENTER.—BOLD should 

12 seek to procure space, hire staff, and develop program13 ming for the establishment of a flagship public engage14 ment and leadership center in the Western Balkans that 

15 seeks— 

16 (1) to counter disinformation and malign influ17 ence; 

18 (2) to promote cross-cultural engagement; 

19 (3) to provide training for young Balkan lead20 ers described in subsection (d); and 

21 (4) to harmonize the efforts of existing venues 

22 throughout the Western Balkans established by the 

23 Office of American Spaces. 

24 (f) BRIEFING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec3 retary of State, acting through the Assistant Sec4 retary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, 

5 shall provide a briefing to the appropriate congres6 sional committees that describes the status of ex7 change programs involving the Western Balkans re8 gion. 

9 (2) ELEMENTS.—The briefing required under 

10 paragraph (1) shall— 

11 (A) assess the factors constraining the 

12 number and frequency of International Visitor 

13 Leadership Program participants from the 6 

14 countries of the Western Balkans; 

15 (B) identify the resources that are nec16 essary to address the factors described in sub17 paragraph (A); and 

18 (C) describe a strategy for connecting 

19 alumni and participants of the Department of 

20 State’s professional development exchange pro21 grams in the Western Balkans with alumni and 

22 participants from other countries in Europe, to 

23 enhance inter-region and intra-region people-to24 people ties. 


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1 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

3 necessary for each of the fiscal years 2023 through 2027 

4 to carry out this section. 

Æ 


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