I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1083 
To require a strategy for engagement with Southeast Asia and the Association 
of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 15, 2021 
Mrs. WAGNER (for herself and Mr. CASTRO of Texas) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To require a strategy for engagement with Southeast Asia 
and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Southeast Asia Strat-
egy Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Southeast Asia is the fulcrum of the Indo- 
Pacific region, providing both a geographic and mar-
itime link between East and South Asia. 
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(2) The Association of Southeast Asian Nations 
(ASEAN), a regional intergovernmental organiza-
tion, remains central to the Indo-Pacific region’s in-
stitutional architecture and to United States foreign 
policy toward the region. 
(3) The United States has reaffirmed that the 
security and sovereignty of its Southeast Asian allies 
and partners, including a strong, independent 
ASEAN, remain vital to the prosperity and stability 
of the Indo-Pacific region. 
(4) The United States has committed to deepen 
longstanding alliances and partnerships with a range 
of Southeast Asian nations, including by promoting 
our shared values, democracy, human rights, and 
civil society. 
(5) Since the end of the Second World War, 
United States investments in strengthening alliances 
and partnerships with Southeast Asian nations have 
yielded tremendous returns for United States inter-
ests, as working with and through these alliances 
and partnerships have increased the region’s ability 
to address common challenges. 
(6) ASEAN member states are critical United 
States security partners in protecting the freedom 
and openness of the maritime domain and pre-
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venting violent extremism and the trafficking of 
weapons of mass destruction. 
(7) ASEAN member states have contributed 
significantly to regional disaster monitoring and 
management and emergency response through initia-
tives such as the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for 
Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management, 
an inter-governmental organization that facilitates 
coordination and cooperation among ASEAN mem-
ber states and international organizations in times 
of emergency. 
(8) According to the 2018 ASEAN Business 
Outlook Survey, ASEAN member states are vital to 
the prosperity of the United States economy and ex-
ports to ASEAN economies support more than 
500,000 jobs in the United States. 
(9) The United States and ASEAN have estab-
lished a new strategic partnership that will enhance 
cooperation across the economic, political-security, 
and people-to-people pillars of the relationship. 
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 
It is the policy of the United States to— 
(1) deepen cooperation with ASEAN and 
ASEAN member states in the interest of promoting 
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peace, security, and stability in the Indo-Pacific re-
gion; 
(2) affirm the importance of ASEAN centrality 
and ASEAN-led mechanisms in the evolving institu-
tional architecture of the Indo-Pacific region; and 
(3) establish and communicate a comprehensive 
strategy toward the Indo-Pacific region that articu-
lates— 
(A) the role and importance of Southeast 
Asia to the United States; 
(B) the value of the United States-ASEAN 
relationship; 
(C) the mutual interests of all parties; 
(D) the concrete and material benefits all 
nations derive from strong United States en-
gagement and leadership in Southeast Asia; and 
(E) efforts to forge and maintain ASEAN 
consensus, especially on key issues of political 
and security concern to the region, such as the 
South China Sea. 
SEC. 4. STRATEGY FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH SOUTHEAST 
ASIA AND ASEAN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, 
in consultation with the heads of other Federal depart-
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