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tate military interoperability, information sharing, 
and appropriate technology transfers; 
(3) designating the responsible individual within 
the Department of Defense to facilitate the major de-
fense partnership with India, as required by section 
1292(a)(1)(B) of the National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114–328; 130 
Stat. 2559); 
(4) pursuing strategic initiatives to help develop 
India’s defense capabilities, including maritime secu-
rity capabilities; 
(5) improving cooperation on and coordination 
of humanitarian and disaster relief responses; 
(6) conducting additional joint exercises with 
India in the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean region, 
and the Western Pacific; and 
(7) furthering cooperative efforts to promote secu-
rity and stability in Afghanistan. 
SEC. 1248. SENSE OF SENATE ON STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE 
OF 
MAINTAINING 
COMMITMENTS 
UNDER 
COMPACTS OF FREE ASSOCIATION. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following find-
ings: 
(1) The Federated States of Micronesia, the Re-
public of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of
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Palau are sovereign countries in free association with 
the United States under the Compacts of Free Asso-
ciation (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Com-
pacts’’), which provide for the exclusive right of the 
United States Armed Forces to operate in the areas 
covered by the Compacts. 
(2) Such exclusive right allows the United States 
to curtail the potential expansion of foreign militaries 
into areas covered by the Compacts. 
(3) Under the Compacts, eligible citizens of the 
Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the 
Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau may— 
(A) reside, work, and study in the United 
States without a visa; and 
(B) serve in the United States Armed 
Forces. 
(4) An estimated 1⁄4 of the populations of the 
Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the 
Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau has relo-
cated to the United States. 
(5) Under the Compacts, the Federal Government 
is required to provide assistance to any affected juris-
diction in the United States to defray costs incurred 
by the affected jurisdiction for health, educational, so-
cial, or public safety services, or for infrastructure re-
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lating to such services, due to the residence in the af-
fected jurisdiction of citizens of the Federated States 
of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, 
and the Republic of Palau. 
(b) SENSE OF SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate 
that maintaining the commitments of the United States 
under the Compacts is of vital strategic importance to the 
national security interests of the United States. 
SEC. 1249. SENSE OF SENATE ON UNITED STATES MILITARY 
FORCES ON THE KOREAN PENINSULA. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following find-
ings: 
(1) On June 25, 1950, the Democratic People’s 
Republic of Korea (DPRK), under the rule of Kim Il- 
sung, the grandfather of Kim Jong-un, launched a 
surprise attack against forces from the Republic of 
Korea (South Korea) and small contingent of United 
States forces, thus beginning the Korean War. 
(2) In June and July of 1950, the United Na-
tions Security Council adopted Resolutions 82, 83, 
and 84 calling for the Democratic People’s Republic 
of Korea to cease hostilities and withdraw, to rec-
ommend that United Nations member nations provide 
forces to repel the Democratic People’s Republic of 
Korea attack, and stating any forces provided should
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be unified under the command of the United States, 
respectively. 
(3) Fighting as part of a 1,000,000-strong, 22- 
nation United Nations force, 36,574 members of the 
United States Armed Forces and 137,899 members of 
the South Korean military lost their lives during the 
three years of armed hostilities and brutal conflict in 
the Korean War. 
(4) On July 27, 1953, the Democratic People’s 
Republic of Korea, Chinese People’s Volunteers, and 
the United Nations signed an armistice agreement 
ceasing all hostilities in Korea and establishing the 
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). 
(5) Since 1953, lawfully-deployed United States 
and United Nations forces have remained alongside 
their South Korean counterparts, continuing to pro-
tect and defend South Korea and deter aggression 
from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. 
(6) As a lasting testament the blood and treasure 
lost during the Korean War and the strong and un-
wavering alliance built from the ashes of the conflict, 
the Korean War Memorial in Washington, District of 
Columbia, and the War Memorial of Korea in Seoul, 
South Korea, prominently display the following in-
scription: ‘‘Our Nation honors her Sons and Daugh-
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ters who answered the call to defend a Country they 
never knew and a people they never met.’’. 
(7) The United States maintains a robust, well- 
trained, and ready force of approximately 28,500 
members of the Armed Forces in South Korea, and 
the presence of the members of the Armed Forces in 
South Korea demonstrates the continued resolve and 
support of the United States for the enduring United 
States-South Korean Alliance. 
(8) On December 22, 2017, Kim Jong-un stated, 
‘‘The rapid development of [North Korea’s] nuclear 
force is now exerting big influence on the world polit-
ical structure and strategic environment.’’. 
(9) On January 1, 2018, Kim Jong-un stated 
‘‘The entire United States is within range of our nu-
clear weapons, and a nuclear button is always on my 
desk. This is reality, not a threat. This year we 
should focus on mass producing nuclear warheads 
and ballistic missiles for operational deployment.’’. 
(10) Despite 11 standalone United Nations Secu-
rity Council resolutions against the nuclear and bal-
listic missile programs of the Democratic People’s Re-
public of Korea, 8 of which passed during the rule of 
Kim Jong-un, the Democratic People’s Republic of 
Korea has continued to illegally and unlawfully pur-
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sue a long-range, nuclear capability meant to hold 
hostage the United States and threaten the security of 
the neighbors of the Democratic People’s Republic of 
Korea. 
(11) The 2017 National Security Strategy (NSS) 
states— 
(A) ‘‘Our alliance and friendship with 
South Korea, forged by the trials of history, is 
stronger than ever.’’; 
(B) ‘‘Allies and partners magnify our 
power . . . [and] together with our allies, part-
ners, and aspiring partners, the United States 
will pursue cooperation with reciprocity.’’; and 
(C) with respect to priority actions in the 
Indo-Pacific region, ‘‘We will redouble our com-
mitment to established alliances and partner-
ships, while expanding and deepening relation-
ships with new partners that share respect for 
sovereignty . . . and the rule of law.’’. 
(12) Secretary of Defense James Mattis stated, 
‘‘Winston Churchill noted that the only thing harder 
than fighting with allies is fighting without them. 
History proves that we are stronger when we stand 
united with others. Accordingly, our military will be