Topic: International Affairs — Specific Country
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Date: 2014-04-28 00:00:00

Asia-Pacific Region Priority Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to: (1) report to the congressional defense committees on the U.S. Pacific Command's munitions strategy for the next ten years, (2) appoint a Director of Defense Unmanned Systems, and (3) enter into an agreement with an independent entity to assess anti-access and area-denial capabilities that pose a threat to the United States and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region and strategies to mitigate such threats.

Requires the Director of DOD's Office of Net Assessment to assess the maritime balance of forces in the Asia-Pacific region for the next ten years, focusing on the Chinese People's Liberation Army and State Oceanic Administration.

Directs the Secretary to: (1) identify opportunities for increasing missile defense cooperation among the United States, Japan, and the Republic of Korea and to evaluate options for short-range missile, rocket, and artillery defense capabilities; (2) submit a report assessing DOD's ability to deter and defeat any act of space aggression by an adversary; and (3) conduct a study, acting through the Office of Net Assessment, of potential alternative defense and deterrent strategies in response to existing and projected counter-space capabilities of China and Russia. Authorizes appropriations for FY2015 for research, development, test, and evaluation, Air Force, for enhancing space situational awareness capabilities of the Air Force.

Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Defense should: (1) ensure that members of the Armed Forces continue to have reliable access to military training ranges, including ranges within the U.S. Pacific Command area; and (2) maximize the Armed Forces use of the Pohakuloa Training Area in Hawaii and increase its use for bilateral and multilateral exercises with regional allies and partners.

Authorizes the Secretary of the Navy to acquire interests in real property near the Pacific Missile Range Facility, Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii, for the purpose of limiting encroachments on, and facilitating, military training, testing, and operations at that installation.

Reaffirms: (1) U.S. commitment and support for allies and partners in the Asia-Pacific region and for the longstanding U.S. policy that Article V of the United States-Japan Mutual Defense Treaty applies to the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands, and (2) the U.S security commitment to Japan.

Directs the Secretary to report to specified congressional committees on: (1) opportunities to further strengthen the relationship between the United States and the Republic of Korea, with an emphasis on security and trade; and (2) the maritime balance of forces between China and Taiwan and the posture and readiness of Taiwan's navy to respond to an attack.

Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2000 to require the Secretary's annual report on military and security developments involving China to include analyses and forecasts of developments in China's maritime law enforcement capabilities and organization, focusing on contested maritime areas in the South China Sea and East China Sea.