III 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 126 

Recognizing the vital importance of the Mekong River to Southeast Asia 

and the role of the Mekong-United States Partnership in supporting 

the prosperity of the region. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 28, 2023 

Mr. MERKLEY (for himself and Mr. SULLIVAN) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the vital importance of the Mekong River to 

Southeast Asia and the role of the Mekong-United States 

Partnership in supporting the prosperity of the region. 

Whereas the Mekong River supports the livelihoods of approximately 60,000,000 people, making it the most important river in Southeast Asia and one of the most important rivers in the world; 

Whereas the Mekong-United States Partnership, comprising 

the United States, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, 

and Vietnam, and the predecessor of that partnership, 

the Lower Mekong Initiative, have contributed greatly to 

the economic, social, and human resources development 

of the countries in the Mekong River Basin and the protection of the Mekong River; 


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Whereas the United States has longstanding diplomatic relations with the countries in the Mekong River Basin, including a nearly 200-year-old relationship with treaty ally 

Thailand; 

Whereas the development of the countries in the Mekong 

River Basin is critical for the unity, economic strength, 

and institutional development of the Association of 

Southeast Asian Nations, a strategic partner of the 

United States; 

Whereas the Mekong River is increasingly imperiled by the 

threats from worsening and extreme changes in the environment, coupled with the construction of upstream dams 

that have altered the natural flow of the river and vital 

ecological processes supported by natural flow; 

Whereas, since 2019, the flow of water in the Mekong River 

during the wet season has been abnormally low; 

Whereas the Nuozhadu and Xiaowan Dams in China account 

for more than 50 percent of the water storage of all dams 

in the Mekong River Basin and can restrict up to 10 percent of the total wet season flow of the Mekong River, 

exacerbating drought conditions downstream; 

Whereas the Mekong River Commission is an integral partner 

in ensuring the long-term health of the Mekong River; 

Whereas the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy can be a leader in supporting river development and protection; 

Whereas the Mekong Dam Monitor, funded partly by the 

Mekong-United States Partnership, has provided essential data and information about the impacts of hydropower dams along the Mekong River to the people and 

governments of the Mekong River Basin to allow them to 


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prepare for irregular water flows and mitigate the economic and environmental impacts of those flows; 

Whereas the Mekong River has become a hub for criminal 

elements to traffic in drugs, people, and wildlife, undermining the rule of law in the countries in the Mekong 

River Basin and impacting the world through the proliferation of illegal drugs and fauna that can cause spillover of zoonotic diseases; 

Whereas the international community has committed to support the development of countries along the Mekong 

River through internationally recognized development 

goals; 

Whereas the Friends of the Mekong, which includes the countries in the Mekong River Basin, the United States, Australia, the European Union, Japan, New Zealand, the 

Republic of Korea, the Asian Development Bank, the 

Mekong River Commission Secretariat, and the World 

Bank, is committed to supporting the shared principles 

that have underpinned peace and prosperity across the 

Indo-Pacific for decades; 

Whereas close coordination and collaboration with civil society groups throughout the Mekong River Basin is essential to the protection of the Mekong River; 

Whereas, among the countries in the Mekong River Basin, 

there has been a negative trend toward the detention and 

detainment of civil society actors and journalists and an 

increase in violations of human rights; 

Whereas the February 1, 2021, military coup in Burma was 

illegal and unjustified and has resulted in more than 

2,000 deaths, more than 1,000,000 people displaced, and 

tens of thousands of people in detention, and continued 


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violence threatens the stability of the entire region, especially those countries along the borders of Burma; and 

Whereas diaspora communities from countries in the Mekong 

River Basin are a vital part of the United States and 

help build thriving people-to-people ties between those 

countries and the United States that lead to strong commercial, civil society, and cultural ties: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) expresses sincere concern over the environ3 mental, economic, and humanitarian threats to the 

4 Mekong River and the communities of the Mekong 

5 River and continued support to counter those 

6 threats; and 

7 (2) declares it is the policy of the United States 

8 Government to— 

9 (A) through the Mekong-United States 

10 Partnership and the Friends of the Mekong, 

11 promote the economic and environmental well12 being of the people of Mainland Southeast Asia 

13 in the 5 countries through which the Mekong 

14 River flows, namely, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, 

15 Thailand, and Vietnam; 

16 (B) support a whole-of-government ap17 proach in providing and coordinating Federal 

18 aid and assistance throughout the Mekong 

19 River Basin under the Mekong-United States 


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1 Partnership, including programmatic support 

2 provided by the Department of State, the 

3 United States Agency for International Devel4 opment, and other Federal agencies; 

5 (C) contribute to the development of qual6 ity infrastructure, the development of national 

7 electricity markets, cross-border energy trade, 

8 the facilitation of cross-border transport, clean 

9 energy acceleration and deployment, the devel10 opment of micro, small, and medium enter11 prises, agriculture, transportation, the facilita12 tion of trade and investment, strengthened sub13 regional production linkages and supply chains, 

14 digital infrastructure, and the digital economy 

15 in the Mekong River Basin; 

16 (D) promote engagement and buy-in of the 

17 United States private sector to support inclu18 sive economic growth, resilience, global health, 

19 education, and long-term development in the re20 gion; 

21 (E) leverage the expertise of the United 

22 States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Aus23 tralia, and other partners in high-quality infra24 structure to support the economic development 


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1 needs of the countries in the Mekong River 

2 Basin; 

3 (F) support the development of quality in4 frastructure, including through projects fi5 nanced by the United States International De6 velopment Finance Corporation, as appropriate, 

7 in the countries in the Mekong River Basin; 

8 (G) encourage all members of the Associa9 tion of Southeast Asian Nations to view the en10 vironmental, humanitarian, and economic 

11 threats to the Mekong River as a danger to the 

12 entire region; 

13 (H) promote effective water use policies, 

14 natural resources management, and environ15 mental conservation and protection, including— 

16 (i) through support for a technically 

17 sound, well-coordinated, and consensus18 based approach to managing the shared re19 sources of the Mekong River Basin; 

20 (ii) through support for environmental 

21 conservation, protection, and resilience in 

22 the Mekong subregion; and 

23 (iii) by enhancing the capacity of 

24 countries in the Mekong River Basin in the 

25 sustainable conservation and management 


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1 of natural resources, including fishery re2 sources, for sustainable food security; 

3 (I) continue the important work that pro4 vides vital data and monitoring to the people 

5 and Governments of the Mekong River; 

6 (J) support the development of the capac7 ity of the region to respond to a variety of 

8 threats, including countering transnational 

9 crime such as trafficking of drugs, wildlife, tim10 ber, and persons, and criminal activity associ11 ated with illegal, unreported and unregulated 

12 fishing, and to improve health security, includ13 ing emergency preparedness and response for 

14 pandemics and epidemics, cybersecurity, and 

15 disaster response and preparedness and human16 itarian assistance and disaster relief; 

17 (K) promote the development of human 

18 capital through education, medical and public 

19 health partnerships, vocational training, youth 

20 empowerment, women’s economic empower21 ment, gender equality, university cooperation, 

22 and educational and professional exchanges; 

23 (L) work together with countries in the 

24 Mekong River Basin to combat pollution, over 

25 fishing, natural resource degradation, and the 


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1 effects that changes in the global climate sys2 tems are having on the Mekong River, and the 

3 communities that depend on the river, and to 

4 support the abilities of such communities to 

5 adapt and build resilience capacities of those 

6 countries; 

7 (M) encourage all countries in the Mekong 

8 River Basin to provide timely early warning for 

9 natural and unnatural operations of the river; 

10 (N) support freedom of expression in the 

11 countries in the Mekong River Basin through 

12 promoting independent journalism and the free13 dom to access information; 

14 (O) continue to call for the cessation of vi15 olence in Burma and support the return of 

16 Burma to a path of inclusive democracy, so that 

17 it can fully contribute to regional development; 

18 (P) prioritize the strengthening of people19 to-people ties through United States exchange 

20 programs such as the Fulbright Program, the 

21 Peace Corps, the International Visitors Leader22 ship Program, and the Young Southeast Asian 

23 Leaders Initiative Program, including the 

24 Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative 

25 Academy at Fulbright University Vietnam; and 


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1 (Q) recognize that strong democratic insti2 tutions, the promotion and protection of funda3 mental freedoms, independent civil society, and 

4 free and fair elections are central to imple5 menting the shared vision of a Mekong River 

6 region, and an Indo-Pacific region, that is free, 

7 open, secure, and prosperous. 

Æ 


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