Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act
Bill: H.R.3446 | Sponsor: Rep. Sherman, Brad (D-CA)
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act
This bill requires the Department of State to report to Congress on various issues relating to North Korea.
Specifically, the State Department must report to Congress a review of the restrictions on travel by U.S. nationals to North Korea, including whether such restrictions should be adjusted to allow travel to North Korea to attend a commemoration of a relative.
The State Department must also report to Congress a clear roadmap for achieving permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula.

To review current restrictions on travel to North Korea, call for a 
         formal end to the Korean War, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Peace on the Korean Peninsula Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) On July 27, 1953, the commander in chief of the United 
        Nations Command signed an armistice agreement with the supreme 
        commander of the North Korean People's Army and the commander 
        of the Chinese People's Volunteers, aiming to ``insure a 
        complete cessation of hostilities and of all acts of armed 
        force in Korea until a final peaceful settlement is achieved''.
            (2) The armistice agreement neither formally ended the war 
        nor represented a final peaceful settlement.
            (3) On April 27, 2018, in Panmunjom, the leaders of South 
        Korea and North Korea declared that ``a new era of peace has 
        begun on the Korean peninsula'', and committed ``to declare the 
        end of war'' on the Korean peninsula 65 years after the signing 
        of the armistice agreement.
            (4) In its roll out of its policy towards North Korea, the 
        Biden Administration expressed support for the Singapore 
        framework, which identifies peace on the Korean peninsula as an 
        objective of any future negotiations between the United States 
        and North Korea.
            (5) The United States should pursue a sustained and 
        credible diplomatic process to achieve an end to the Korean 
        war, and every effort should be made to avoid military 
        confrontation with North Korea.
            (6) The persistence of a state of war does not serve the 
        national interest of the United States and its allies.
            (7) One major consequence of the continuation of the Korean 
        war is that the United States does not have formal relations 
        with North Korea, which has prevented Korean Americans with 
        relatives in North Korea from seeing their families.
            (8) Approximately 100,000 Americans have relatives living 
        in North Korea.
            (9) At the Hanoi Summit in February 2019, the United States 
        and North Korea discussed formally ending the Korean war and 
        the exchange of diplomatic liaison offices, however these 
        discussions did not advance due to a stalemate on nuclear and 
        missile issues.
            (10) The ongoing nuclear- and ballistic-missile-related 
        activities of North Korea continue to pose a threat to 
        international peace and security.

SEC. 3. HUMANITARIAN CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING VISITING NORTH KOREA.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
current restrictions barring United States nationals traveling to the 
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) warrant review by the 
Secretary of State.
    (b) Review.--The Secretary of State shall conduct a full review of 
the restrictions in place conditioning the travel of United States 
nationals to the DPRK. Such review shall include consideration of the 
following:
            (1) The Department of State's guidance as to the nature of 
        travel to the DPRK that qualifies as ``in the national 
        interest'' of the United States, including whether the scope of 
        travel qualifying as such should be adjusted.
            (2) The ``compelling humanitarian considerations'' that 
        qualify a United States national for travel to the DPRK, 
        including whether the scope of travel permissible under such 
        considerations should be adjusted.
            (3) Whether, and if so, to what extent and under what 
        conditions, travel to the DPRK for the purposes of attending to 
        or witnessing funerals, burials, or other religious and family 
        commemorations of relatives of United States nationals in the 
        DPRK does or should qualify as ``compelling humanitarian 
        considerations'' meriting issuance of Special Validation 
        Passports to such nationals.
    (c) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit 
        to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate a report detailing the review conducted under subsection 
        (b). Such report shall include a comprehensive description of 
        the Department of State's consideration of all matters 
        described in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of such subsection, 
        including, as applicable, any related policy changes and the 
        rationale behind the Department's decision to make or refrain 
        from making policy changes relating to such matters.
            (2) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be 
        submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified 
        annex.

SEC. 4. CALLING FOR A FORMAL END TO THE KOREAN WAR.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that given the 
commitment of the leaders of South Korea and North Korea in Panmunjom 
on April 27, 2018, to actively promote meetings involving the United 
States ``with a view to replacing the Armistice Agreement with a peace 
agreement and establishing a permanent and solid peace regime'', the 
Secretary of State should pursue serious, urgent diplomatic engagement 
with North Korea and South Korea in pursuit of a binding peace 
agreement constituting a formal and final end to the state of war 
between North Korea, South Korea, and the United States.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit 
        to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate a report that describes a clear roadmap for achieving a 
        permanent peace agreement on the Korean peninsula.
            (2) Contents.--The report required under paragraph (1) 
        shall--
                    (A) contain an accounting of the steps necessary to 
                enter into negotiations with North Korea and South 
                Korea to conclude a binding peace agreement;
                    (B) identify the key stakeholders involved in such 
                negotiations; and
                    (C) describe the challenges concerning the ability 
                of the United States to achieve a binding peace 
                agreement constituting a formal and final end to the 
                state of war between North Korea, South Korea, and the 
                United States.
            (3) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be 
        submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified 
        annex.

SEC. 5. ESTABLISHING LIAISON OFFICES.

    It is the sense of Congress that given the joint statement signed 
by the United States and North Korea in Singapore on June 12, 2018, 
which included an agreement to ``establish new U.S.-DPRK relations in 
accordance with the desire of the peoples of the two countries for 
peace and prosperity'', the Secretary of State should seek to enter 
into negotiations with the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea 
(DPRK) to establish liaison offices of the DPRK and the United States 
in the respective capitals of each such country.
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