Recognizing the importance of the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and the Republic of Korea on October 1, 1953.

Whereas, on October 1, 1953, the Mutual Defense Treaty Between the United States and the Republic of Korea (5 U.S.T. 2368) was signed in Washington, to which the Senate provided its advice and consent to ratification on January 26, 1954; Whereas the shared commitment to recognize an armed attack on either of the parties as dangerous to the peace and security of the other and to act to meet the common danger in accordance with [each’s] constitutional processes Whereas the United States and Korea established diplomatic relations on May 22, 1882, with the signing of the Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce and Navigation, and reestablished its diplomatic relationship with the Republic of Korea Whereas, in 2023, the United States-Republic of Korea alliance marks 70 years since the cessation of hostilities in the Korean war and the signing of the Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953, which remains in place today and that by its terms has neither formally ended the Korean war nor constituted a permanent settlement of peace on the Korean Peninsula; Whereas the United States-Republic of Korea alliance is the linchpin of peace, security, and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region and is essential to confronting the threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; Whereas the United States-Republic of Korea alliance is rooted in mutual trust, shared sacrifice, common values, economic interests, and generations of people-to-people ties that provide a foundation for one of the strongest, most interoperable, and enduring bilateral alliances in the world; Whereas the United States assures its ironclad security commitment to the Republic of Korea, including the United States extended deterrent underpinned by the full range of United States capabilities; Whereas the United States-Republic of Korea alliance was forged in shared sacrifice, with 1,789,000 United States soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines serving during the Korean war, of whom 36,574 paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives in defense of the Republic of Korea, including 7,174 Korean Augmentation to the United States Army soldiers, and over 7,500 members of the United States Armed Forces remain classified by the Department of Defense as missing in action; Whereas casualties of the Republic of Korea were more than 217,000 soldiers killed, more than 291,000 wounded, and over 1,000,000 civilians killed or missing; Whereas the Republic of Korea has since its founding become a thriving democracy with a vibrant press and commitment to the rule of law and a free market economy; Whereas the United States-Republic of Korea Security Consultative Meeting met on November 3, 2022, in the District of Columbia and shared their common understanding that the U.S.-ROK Alliance is based on the same principles and shared values including: mutual trust, freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law Whereas the United States and the Republic of Korea are committed to pursuing closely coordinated diplomatic efforts through a shared strategy to achieve the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of North Korea and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula; Whereas the Republic of Korea’s 2022 Strategy for a Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region emphasizes its desire to be a global pivotal state that commits to working with other key nations both within and beyond the region to foster a free and peaceful region … while strengthening the rules-based international order Whereas President Yoon Suk Yeol took the courageous and bold step of announcing that the Government of the Republic of Korea would compensate Korean victims of Japanese wartime labor in order to facilitate the resolution of an issue that has hampered cooperation with Japan; Whereas a robust and effective trilateral relationship between and among the United States, the Republic of Korea, and Japan is critical for joint security and interests in defending freedom and democracy, upholding human rights, promoting peace, security, and the rule of law in the Indo-Pacific and across the globe, championing women’s empowerment, and combating and adapting to complex environmental challenges; Whereas the American and Korean people share deeply rooted values of defending freedom, championing economic and social opportunity and inclusion, upholding human rights, and respecting the rule of law; Whereas, the United States, Republic of Korea, and Japan have held a series of trilateral meetings, including a trilateral leaders’ summit on November 13, 2022, a Foreign Ministers’ meeting on September 23, 2022, and a vice ministerial meeting on February 13, 2023, at which the three countries committed to continuing trilateral exercises on ballistic missile defense and antisubmarine warfare, and further determined to explore new areas of security cooperation, including sharing Democratic People’s Republic of Korea missile warning data in real time; Whereas the Republic of Korea is the United States sixth largest goods trading partner with $162,900,000,000 in total (two-way) goods trade and $31,500,000,000 in total services trade for a combined $194,400,000,000 during 2021; Whereas the Republic of Korea is one of the United States top sources of foreign direct investment, which totaled $110,600,000,000 in 2021 and, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Republic of Korea multinational enterprises in the United States employed almost 84,000 employees in 2020; Whereas United States-Republic of Korea economic partnership based on the principle of joint prosperity was strengthened in 2012 with the signing of the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement; Whereas, on May 21, 2022, the United States and the Republic of Korea agreed to leverage the comparative advantage shared between the United States and the Republic of Korea to enhance public and private cooperation to protect and promote critical and emerging technologies, including leading-edge semiconductors, ecofriendly EV batteries, Artificial Intelligence, quantum technology, biotechnology, biomanufacturing, and autonomous robotics Whereas the strength of the United States-Republic of Korea relationship is due in large part to the approximately 2,500,000 Korean Americans that have made significant contributions to every facet of American society and leadership to now include 4 Members of the House of Representatives, Andy Kim of New Jersey, Young Kim of California, Marilyn Strickland of Washington, and Michelle Steel of California; and Whereas, in April 2023, President Moon Yoon Suk Yeol will visit the United States at the invitation of President Joe Biden: Now, therefore, be it That the House of Representatives— (1) welcomes President Yoon Suk Yeol to the United States and urges both sides to use the occasion of this state visit to further deepen the close security, economic, and people-to-people ties between the United States and the Republic of Korea; (2) reaffirms the importance of the United States-Republic of Korea relationship as the linchpin to safeguarding peace, security, and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and as a critical component of peace in the Indo-Pacific region; (3) reaffirms the United States extended deterrence commitments to the Republic of Korea, and that the United States will continue to ensure that its policy and posture reflects the requirements of extended deterrence; (4) supports ongoing efforts to further strengthen, broaden, and deepen the ironclad United States-Republic of Korea alliance, including the United States-Republic of Korea Foreign and Defense Ministerial Meeting (2+2), the Security Consultative Meeting, and the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (2+2) to confront threats to the peace and safety of both nations, and to stand together for the common values and shared interests that unite us; (5) calls for continued cooperation between the Governments of the United States and the Republic of Korea in the promotion of human rights; (6) supports the Republic of Korea’s engagement in regional diplomacy, including the launching of the ROK-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative, participation in the Minerals Security Partnership, joining of the Partners in the Blue Pacific, and its hosting of a summit with Pacific Island nations; (7) endorses further Republic of Korea engagement with the Quad initiatives, particularly in the Quad Climate Working Group that works to strengthen implementation of the Paris Agreement and to cooperate on climate mitigation, adaptation, resilience, technology, capacity building, and finance; (8) calls for close coordination to achieve the denuclearization of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the establishment of a permanent and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula; (9) encourages close cooperation among the United States, the Republic of Korea, and Japan to address shared challenges; and (10) recognizes the deep partnership forged over 70 years since the signing of the Mutual Defense Treaty that has provided security for both countries, established a durable trust, undergirded the rules-based-order in the Indo-Pacific, and demonstrated the benefits of robust democracies on both sides of the Pacific.

Summary: This resolution recognizes the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Mutual Defense Treaty between the United States and South Korea. Affirming the importance of the U.S.-South Korean alliance as the linchpin to safeguarding peace, security, and prosperity on the Korean peninsula, the resolution welcomes President Yoon Suk Yeol to the United States. It also supports ongoing defense and security ties, calls for continued promotion of human rights, and encourages close cooperation between the United States, South Korea, and Japan.