Ben Cardin Leads Senate Foreign Relations Committee Confirmation Hearing For Pending Nominees

6 months ago

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds a confirmation hearing for pending nominees.

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Transcript

00:00:00 order. Our hearing today is to hear from five of President Biden's nominees

00:00:07 uh, dealing with career positions, uh, and ambassadorships. And it's wonderful

00:00:14 to have you all here. We thank you all for being here. Uh, thank you to

00:00:18 Senator Ricketts for being here to lead the Republican side of this hearing.

00:00:24 It's not always easy to find members that are that have

00:00:29 are willing to adjust their schedules in order to accommodate these hearings.

00:00:32 And I think Senator Ricketts are always being available to this committee to

00:00:36 carry out our important work. I'm gonna have some opening comments. Senator

00:00:40 Ricketts is gonna have some opening comments. But first I want to recognize

00:00:44 Senator Reed, uh, and allow him to make an introduction and thank him for

00:00:48 being here in the committee. We sometimes have a friendly rivalry

00:00:52 between armed services and foreign relations. But since the National

00:00:56 Defense Authorization Bill will be up soon and I'm gonna need his help, he

00:01:00 goes first.

00:01:00 Thank you very much. Chairman Carden, Senator Ricketts, Senator Cain. It is

00:01:07 my pleasure to introduce Christine J. Sari, the president's nominee to be

00:01:13 assistant secretary of state for oceans and international environmental and

00:01:17 scientific affairs. Anyone who has had the pleasure of working with Chris

00:01:21 knows a couple of things. Number one, she is only partisan about one issue,

00:01:27 University of Michigan football.

00:01:29 Number two. If you want to get something done, then you want to work

00:01:35 with Chris time and again over her career. Chris has worked across the

00:01:40 partisan divide to reach consensus on difficult issues. She's smart. She does

00:01:46 the hard work to be well informed, and she does a harder work to understand

00:01:50 the views and goals of other people. She also has the integrity of follow

00:01:55 through on her commitments as a Senate staffer and as a senior advisor to

00:01:59 the Department of Commerce and the Office of Management and Budget and

00:02:04 the Department of Interior. Chris has earned a reputation as a problem

00:02:07 solver and a coalition builder. Among other things, her work to permanently

00:02:12 fund the land and water conservation fund laid the foundation for the Great

00:02:16 American Outdoors Act. Most recently, Chris served as the president and CEO

00:02:22 of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, where she transformed the

00:02:26 organization into a leading voice for conserving and restoring U. S. Waters,

00:02:31 primarily by engaging local communities and businesses in stewardship. If

00:02:37 confirmed as assistant secretary of state for oceans, Chris will bring her

00:02:40 knowledge, her experience, her commitment and her skills and coalition

00:02:45 building to advance global cooperation in science and the environment. Mr

00:02:50 Chairman, as you know, it is vitally important to have the best talent to

00:02:53 effectively move our nation's interest forward. In my view, there is no one

00:02:58 more prepared and well qualified for this post than Chris. Sorry. I urge the

00:03:03 committee support for her nomination. And for Chris, I would say go Wolverines.

00:03:09 For me, I would say go army. Thank you.

00:03:13 Thank you, Senator.

00:03:14 Once again, we have a little bit of controversy. It's go Navy and it's go

00:03:19 Maryland. But other than that, you were fine. Thank you, Senator Reed. You're

00:03:24 certainly excused. We appreciate your input. Thank you very much for being

00:03:28 with us.

00:03:28 I'm going to shortly introduce the other four nominees. But before I do

00:03:35 that, let me just welcome our nominees and their families and thank you all

00:03:38 for your willingness to serve in these public positions. These are extremely

00:03:44 challenging times to be in any position of foreign service. So we thank you for

00:03:50 your willingness to come forward. And we also thank your families because we

00:03:56 know you can't do this without a supportive family. So strengthening

00:04:00 global health security by applying the lessons learned from the covert

00:04:03 pandemic and implementing science based approach and reducing spread of

00:04:07 infectious diseases. That's very much on our agenda today. Advocating for

00:04:12 international human rights standards, accounting accountability for past

00:04:15 atrocities and good governance in Sri Lanka as we support its economic

00:04:19 recovery and stabilization of its financial system very much on our minds,

00:04:25 building consensus to protect marine environments from illegal, unreported

00:04:29 and unregulated fishing, deep seabed mining and trafficking of endangered

00:04:33 species or banned toxic substances on our minds. A lot of issues we want to

00:04:39 talk about protecting Moldova from Russia's aggression as it strengthens

00:04:43 its democracy, implements anti corruption reforms and negotiate

00:04:47 secessions with the European Union very much on the agenda today. Staffing the

00:04:53 reopening of the U. S. Embassy and Seychelles with a full time diplomatic

00:04:58 presence to promote maritime security, combat drug trafficking and protect the

00:05:03 environment for each of these missions and including the mission in regards

00:05:08 to the

00:05:09 oceans, international environment, scientific affairs. I'm particularly

00:05:15 interested in that Maryland has one of the most recent new marine sanctuaries

00:05:20 at Melville Bay. So it's wonderful to welcome you all here. The subject

00:05:24 matters that you're going to be responsible for are ones that are

00:05:28 critically important to our country. And let me yield to Senator Ricketts for

00:05:33 his opening comments that before I introduce our nominees.

00:05:36 Great. Thank you very much, Mr Chairman. And I would add my thanks to all of

00:05:41 you for your willingness to serve our country and for your families for the

00:05:44 sacrifices you go through as governor. I did numerous trade missions around the

00:05:49 world and I really appreciate all the foreign service people who helped us on

00:05:54 those and the sacrifices you make to be able to represent our country. So thank

00:05:58 you very much. Um, as the chairman said, you know, these are not easy jobs,

00:06:03 especially as we think about the time. Um, it's so critical for the United

00:06:08 States to advance our interests in the security of American people around the

00:06:11 globe. Today we're considering nominees for five important positions, all of

00:06:16 which require you to contend with some of the greatest challenges facing the

00:06:19 U. S. And foreign policy and national security than we've seen maybe in our

00:06:23 history. Uh, Ms Adam Smith, this is a critical year for Moldova. This fall,

00:06:28 Moldova will hold both a presidential election and a referendum on EU

00:06:32 aspirations. Moldova continues to face Russian hybrid warfare as Putin stops

00:06:37 at nothing to replace the pro western leadership with new government bought

00:06:40 and paid for by the Kremlin. We cannot let Putin play puppeteer with the

00:06:44 future of Moldova and we must do all we can support Western nations. However,

00:06:48 Moldova's future is also dependent on the success of Ukraine on the

00:06:50 battlefield. The only thing standing between Moldova and the Russian attack

00:06:54 is the Ukraine army, which again, one of the reasons why it's important we

00:06:58 continue to support Ukraine. Ambassador Fitzgerald, while the Seychelles might

00:07:03 be Africa's smallest country in terms of population, our 27 year absence, um,

00:07:08 in Victoria has created a vacuum. The PRC has been more than happy to fill.

00:07:12 And so it's got the Seychelles have significant geopolitical, um, uh,

00:07:18 significance. If confirmed, you will face a difficult task of reestablishing

00:07:22 an embassy basically from scratch. That's not gonna be easy. We can't

00:07:26 waste any more time, but appreciate your willingness to do this. This is

00:07:30 vital and that we get it done right and your efforts will send a clear

00:07:33 signals to the Seychelles that we are back here to stay. Miss Horse for years,

00:07:37 Sri Lanka has been a poster child for the dangers of the debt trap diplomacy

00:07:41 of the PRC. Nothing illustrates us more than the port of how many total did I

00:07:46 get that pronounced right? Okay, good enough, which was was eventually

00:07:52 forfeited to the PRC under that 99 year lease. Reckless spending fueled by

00:07:57 loans from the PRC and others has created an economic crisis in Sri Lanka,

00:08:00 and it's struggling to dig itself out of that. What happens to Sri Lanka

00:08:04 illustrates why the United States must provide viable all terms to the PRC.

00:08:07 And I'm encouraged by DFC's recent efforts to finance a shipping container

00:08:12 terminal in the port of Colombo.

00:08:14 These it's these types of strategic investments that were envisioned when

00:08:18 the DFC was set up as a way to effectively push back on the PRC's

00:08:21 Belt and Road Initiative.

00:08:22 I'm sorry. Oh, yes, has a broad portfolio, so I won't have enough time

00:08:27 to cover everything you would oversee. How one area I did want to touch upon

00:08:31 is the science and technology agreements, and in particular, our

00:08:33 science and technology agreement with the PRC. For years, we've seen the

00:08:36 PRC exploit research cooperation with the United States to steal technology

00:08:40 and support its domestic civil, domestic civil military fusion objectives.

00:08:44 The Biden administration is currently renegotiating an STA with the PRC.

00:08:48 Simply put, I and others have significant concerns. That's why I've

00:08:52 introduced common sense legislation that would ensure Congress is able to

00:08:55 provide necessary oversight over any deal that is reached. I hope you would

00:08:59 agree with me that when it comes time for something that's important, the

00:09:01 administration shouldn't show its workforce.

00:09:04 This legislation passed unanimously out of the House Foreign Affairs Committee,

00:09:09 and Mr Chairman, I hope the committee will do the same. And then Dr

00:09:14 thinking a song. How close was I on that?

00:09:17 Um, the position you were nominated for was created with the intent to help us

00:09:22 get ahead of the next pandemic. I would note that when Covid first began to

00:09:26 spread from the PRC, it was high income countries that were hit first and

00:09:30 hardest. It was in these countries we need to needed to lead with diplomatic

00:09:34 engagement, not development and assessments. And in the PRC, uh, at the

00:09:39 W. H. O. We need strong diplomats capable of negotiating access for

00:09:43 investigators. If confirmed, I hope you will. I hope that you can apply

00:09:47 lessons learned and much needed diplomatic leadership so that we can

00:09:50 properly prepare for whenever the next pandemic virus occurs again. Thank you

00:09:54 all very much for your willingness to serve. Look forward to hearing your

00:09:58 testimony and the questions. And Mr Chairman, I yield back. Thank you.

00:10:01 Thank you, Senator Ricketts. There's a common theme among all five of you.

00:10:05 You all have an incredible experience on foreign policy and and your

00:10:09 commitment to foreign policy. Uh, three of you are career. The other two have

00:10:13 extensive experience in the foreign policy agenda. So you all made a career

00:10:17 out of foreign policy, and we we thank you for that commitment. I'll

00:10:21 introduce you in the order in which you will be speaking. Dr John Kang.

00:10:27 Conson was confirmed by the United States Senate as the U. S. Global AIDS

00:10:31 coordinator on May 5th 2022. He also leads the State Department's Bureau of

00:10:37 Global Health Security and Diplomacy. That bureau serves as the department's

00:10:42 coordinating body for work when strengthening global health security to

00:10:45 prevent, detect and respond to infectious diseases, including HIV AIDS,

00:10:50 as well as elevates and integrates global health security as a core

00:10:54 component of the U. S. National security and foreign policy. Elizabeth

00:10:59 Hearst is the principal deputy assistant secretary and deputy assistant

00:11:03 secretary responsible for Pakistan. She came from the U. S. Embassy Berlin,

00:11:08 where she was a minister counselor for public diplomacy for Mission Germany.

00:11:12 She's a member of the senior foreign service. Previously, she served as S. C.

00:11:17 A. S. Director of Security, Transnational Affairs and Assistance

00:11:22 Office has charged the fair and deputy chief of mission of U. S. Embassy

00:11:26 town Estonia. She focused on transatlantic security on NATO's eastern

00:11:31 flank. Next we have Troy, uh, the trail a career member of the senior foreign

00:11:37 service class of counselor, most recently held the position of director

00:11:41 of the Office of West African Affairs at the Department of State. He serves

00:11:45 as the deputy chief of mission at the U. S. Embassy in Ethiopia as deputy

00:11:50 director of the department's Office of Southern African Affairs and deputy

00:11:54 director of the Office of International Security Cooperation in the Bureau of

00:11:58 Political Military Affairs.

00:12:00 He was senior advisor to the United States Special Envoy for the Great

00:12:05 Lakes of Africa, coordinating U. S. Policy on the cross border security,

00:12:09 political and economic issues in the Great Lakes region. Welcome. Kelly Ann

00:12:15 Smith is the deputy chief of mission at the U. S. Mission to the European

00:12:19 Union. She arrived in Brussels in July of 2021. This Adam Smith is a career

00:12:24 diplomat in the U. S. Senior Foreign Service with the rank of minister

00:12:28 counselor. Before arriving in Brussels, Miss Adam Smith served as senior

00:12:33 coordinator for national security affairs in the office of Vice President

00:12:36 Kamala Harris. Previously, she served as charged affair and deputy chief of

00:12:41 mission at the U. S. Embassy in Prague. Welcome, Sarah. You already been

00:12:46 introduced by Senator Reed. But we welcome you here, and we thank you very

00:12:50 much for your willingness to serve. So with that, let us start with Dr

00:12:55 Cangazon. Each of your testimonies will be made part of our record. You may

00:13:00 proceed as you wish. We ask that you try to summarize your your comments and

00:13:04 leave time for us to be able to ask you questions.

00:13:06 Chairman Karen, ranking member, Rick is on members of the committee. I come

00:13:15 before you today at the people tell time as one of the greatest threats to

00:13:20 our national security is the potential for a next pandemic. The covert 19

00:13:25 pandemic taught us that we are more connected and vulnerable than we ever

00:13:30 thought. More than one million Americans lost their lives on the U. S.

00:13:34 Economy suffered over $14 trillion in damage. Climate crisis, rapid movement

00:13:41 of people, misinformation, disinformation or making our jobs

00:13:46 harder. U. S. Leadership matters now more than ever. Last year, Secretary

00:13:51 Blinken's in close collaboration with Congress established the Bureau of

00:13:55 Global Health Security and Diplomacy. This bureau is organized around four

00:14:00 core missions. One to lead diplomatic engagement on global health security

00:14:05 to leverage and her to coordinate U. S. Foreign assistance while promoting

00:14:11 international cooperation for her threats. Three to elevate global health

00:14:16 security as a top national security and foreign policy priority for our

00:14:21 country.

00:14:22 We have already made tremendous progress. Let me highlight three

00:14:26 examples. First, we continue to make progress in the fight against HIV AIDS.

00:14:31 Congress bipartisan support for pepper has enabled us to save over 25 million

00:14:37 lives. The bureau has demonstrated success in leveraging the pepper

00:14:41 platform to address health security threats such as Ebola, Marburg and

00:14:47 impacts. I look forward to working with this committee in a bipartisan

00:14:51 fashion to pass a clean five years pepper reauthorization in 2025. Second,

00:14:57 I recently cheered the pandemic funds strategy committee, which will launch

00:15:02 the five year strategy later this month. And lastly, the bureau launched the

00:15:07 foreign ministry channel for global health security in March, which will

00:15:11 work to coordinate corporate, collaborate and communicate effectively

00:15:15 with other like minded countries to fight infectious disease threats. It is

00:15:21 not a question of if a new her threat will emerge. It is a matter of when the

00:15:27 bureau stands by to lead diplomatic efforts to support these goals. Thank

00:15:32 you.

00:15:32 Thank you very much for your your comments. Uh, sirs.

00:15:37 Yeah.

00:15:37 Mr. Mr. Chairman, ranking member Ricketts and distinguished members of

00:15:43 the committee. Thank you for holding this hearing. I'm honored to be here

00:15:46 today as the president's nominee for U. S. Ambassador Sri Lanka. I started my

00:15:51 diplomatic career in South Asia more than 20 years ago and have long

00:15:54 championed fundamental U. S. Principles, including respect for human rights and

00:15:58 economic freedoms. If confirmed, I look forward to working with Congress to

00:16:02 advance U. S. Interest in Sri Lanka. I'd like to thank a few special special

00:16:07 people. Most importantly, my husband, Colonel J. P. Grish. He is my anchor and

00:16:12 my joy, and we've built our lives around a shared love for public service and

00:16:16 adventure. Five countries, four dogs, 15 years and counting.

00:16:20 We're joined by my sister, Sarah Horst and my nieces, Bailey Evans and Kate

00:16:26 Evans, and I hope that being in the Senate today inspires them on their own

00:16:29 path of public service. I also want to thank my parents, my father, Dr Jim

00:16:34 Horst, who taught me empathy and my mother, Reverend Dr Judith Stone, who

00:16:39 taught me generosity qualities that have served me as a diplomat and a leader.

00:16:42 Sri Lanka has been a vital partner to the United States in the Indo Pacific

00:16:47 region for over 76 years, and if confirmed, I'd focus on three main

00:16:51 pillars of U. S. Interests, broadening economic cooperation, bolstering

00:16:55 security interests and deepening ties with people across the entire country.

00:17:00 Sri Lanka has shown resilience and continues to make steady progress on

00:17:04 economic growth. As the country regains its economic footing, we will continue

00:17:08 to support Sri Lanka's people. Sri Lanka's strategic significance in the

00:17:12 Indian Ocean calls for cooperation to address security challenges and

00:17:16 competitors. If confirmed, I will reiterate our shared commitment to a

00:17:20 stable, free and open Indo Pacific region and the rules based international

00:17:25 order. Sri Lanka has a vibrant civil society, and I look forward to

00:17:29 expanding our people to people ties, including with the dynamic Sri Lankan

00:17:33 American community. I'll support members of marginalized populations,

00:17:37 accountability, truth and reconciliation and transparency and

00:17:40 justice. Let me close by noting a fourth pillar, the true source of

00:17:44 diplomatic success, the people at U. S. Embassy Colombo. If confirmed, I

00:17:49 will empower our interagency team and local staff to make a difference in

00:17:52 our bilateral relationship and practice of foreign policy that benefits the

00:17:56 American people. I look forward to working with Congress on these

00:17:58 priorities.

00:17:59 Thank you very much. We'll next hear from Mr Fitzrell.

00:18:04 Mr Chairman, ranking member Rickets, members of the committee, I'm deeply

00:18:10 honored to appear before you today and grateful to President Biden and

00:18:13 Secretary Blinken for the confidence they placed in me as their nominee. I'm

00:18:17 proud to have my family here today with my wife, Catherine, a fellow Foreign

00:18:20 Service officer, and my Children, Madeline and Sam, who've spent their

00:18:23 lives immersed in the Foreign Service as well, including visits to the

00:18:27 Seychelles. Sam graduates from Virginia Commonwealth University tomorrow

00:18:31 morning, so this is a pretty special week for us.

00:18:33 We recently reopened an embassy in Seychelles after shuttering it in 1996.

00:18:38 If confirmed, I would be the first ambassador in residence in Victoria in

00:18:42 28 years, the role having been performed since then by the person

00:18:45 credentialed to Mauritius. I previously had the honor to be that person in

00:18:50 Mauritius, and while we had significant success in our bilateral

00:18:54 relationship, both sides were keenly aware that the absence of a residence

00:18:58 ambassador was an opportunity cost. If confirmed, it would be the honor of my

00:19:02 career to reestablish that position. Seychelles holds an important place in

00:19:06 the Indian Ocean, astride some of the world's busiest shipping lanes, and the

00:19:10 bilateral relationship between our two nations is built on a foundation of

00:19:13 shared values and mutual respect. If confirmed, my top priority would be the

00:19:17 safety and security of American citizens that make their way to the Seychelles,

00:19:20 but I would also act energetically to promote our other national interests. I

00:19:25 would support the democratic process and our partnership and international fora. I

00:19:29 would promote economic development, including advocacy for U.S. exports, and

00:19:33 further develop our robust security partnership. Thank you, Mr. Chairman,

00:19:38 Ranking Member Ricketts, and members of the committee for the opportunity to be

00:19:41 here. My wife and I are both former Hill staffers, and so I'd also like to thank

00:19:45 your staffs. I know how hard they work for you and your constituents,

00:19:50 and how well they represent you every day. If confirmed, I look forward to

00:19:53 working with you in representing the interests of the American people in the

00:19:56 Seychelles, and I hope very much to welcome you there on a visit someday

00:19:59 soon. I would be happy to answer any questions you have. Thank you. I know the

00:20:03 staff of this committee appreciates that reference to staff, so there's a future

00:20:08 after being a staff person here. I know they appreciate that. Ms. Adams-Smith. Mr.

00:20:16 Chairman, Ranking Member Ricketts, and members of the committee, it is an honor

00:20:20 to appear before you today as President Biden's nominee to be the U.S. Ambassador

00:20:24 to the Republic of Moldova. I'm grateful to the President and Secretary Blinken

00:20:29 for putting their trust in me, and if confirmed, I pledge to work with this

00:20:32 committee to advance U.S. interests in Moldova. I would like to thank my husband

00:20:38 Steve, a career Foreign Service officer, and our children Sophie and Ben for

00:20:42 their support and dedication to public service. I'm also grateful to my parents

00:20:47 Ed and Carol, my late mother Anna, my brother Ed, and my sister Deborah, who is

00:20:52 here today. Finally, I want to recognize my in-laws Ginny and Terry Purvis-Smith.

00:20:57 Terry joined the Foreign Service after a full career as a Presbyterian minister.

00:21:02 He passed away earlier this week, but I know he would have been so proud if he

00:21:07 were here today. I have dedicated the last 29 years to advancing U.S. interests

00:21:13 in Europe with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe. Support for the Western

00:21:18 integration of countries in this region is fundamental to U.S. security. This is

00:21:23 especially true for Moldova, which faces a moment in history that is filled with

00:21:27 great opportunity and tremendous risk. If confirmed, I will be a responsible

00:21:33 steward of U.S. resources and will prioritize the security of U.S. citizens

00:21:37 in Moldova. The government of Moldova faces a window of opportunity to secure

00:21:42 the country's Western orientation. Russia's aggression in Ukraine has

00:21:47 forced Moldova to confront significant security, humanitarian, and energy impacts.

00:21:52 With U.S. and European assistance, Moldova has managed these threats and

00:21:57 embarked on an ambitious reform agenda. Its success has made it even

00:22:02 more of a target for Russian malign influence. If confirmed, I will mobilize

00:22:06 our personnel and resources to support Moldova's efforts to protect its

00:22:10 democracy and enhance its security. I will also support U.S. efforts to

00:22:15 strengthen the capacity of Moldovan institutions to combat corruption, and I

00:22:20 will use the knowledge, experience, and contacts gained from five tours in EU

00:22:24 member states to ensure our actions and assistance support Moldova's accession

00:22:29 path, making it a stronger partner for the United States. Thank you for your

00:22:33 consideration. I look forward to your questions. Thank you for your comments.

00:22:38 Ms. Seery. Thank you, Chairman Cardin, Ranking Member Ricketts, Senator Kane, for

00:22:44 welcoming me today. And Senator Cardin, thank you so much for your leadership on

00:22:49 Mallows Bay. It is a privilege to be considered as the President's nominee

00:22:54 for Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental

00:22:59 and Scientific Affairs. I want to thank my family and Senator Reid for their

00:23:04 continued support of me and my career, and members of the committee and their

00:23:08 staff for taking time to meet with me. Many of the environmental challenges we

00:23:14 face are global, and they require strong partnerships and alliances to address. If

00:23:19 confirmed, my focus will be on working on issues where OES leadership can have a

00:23:23 strong impact for the American people, our allies and partners, and the planet.

00:23:28 I'd like to address three priority areas. First, pollution of all types harms human

00:23:34 health, the environment, and economic growth. One pressing global issue is

00:23:39 plastics pollution. If confirmed, I would work with federal agencies, Congress,

00:23:44 stakeholders, and other countries on a strong, legally binding agreement to

00:23:48 address the global plastic threat, and to work to strengthen implementation of

00:23:52 existing agreements and partnerships to address plastic and other

00:23:56 types of pollution. Second, nature provides critical resources that nourish

00:24:02 us and improve our quality of life. Loss of marine and terrestrial habitat and

00:24:07 species increase the risk of conflict and instability. If confirmed, I will

00:24:12 prioritize working with the committee, Congress, and other federal agencies to

00:24:16 advance policies that address nature crimes, protect environmental defenders,

00:24:20 and help protect and restore natural ecosystems. Third, state space activities

00:24:26 are essential to our way of life, from enhancing economic opportunity to

00:24:30 helping us find our way home. If confirmed, I would like to work to

00:24:34 promote peaceful cooperation in space and its sustainable use in the future.

00:24:38 OES's work is integral to in achieving the U.S. environmental, economic, and

00:24:44 national security objectives. If confirmed, I commit to maintaining

00:24:48 strong lines of communications and cooperation between OES, this committee,

00:24:53 and Congress. Thank you for considering my nomination, and I look forward to

00:24:56 answering your questions. Let me thank all five of you for your appearance here

00:25:01 today and your comments. I have standard questions that are asked to all nominees

00:25:06 for positions. We would appreciate going down the line answering it either yes or

00:25:10 no. The first question is, do you agree to appear before this committee and make

00:25:15 officials from your office available to the committee and designated staff when

00:25:20 invited? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Do you commit to keep this committee fully and

00:25:29 currently informed about the activities under your purview? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

00:25:36 Do you commit to engaging in meaningful consultation while policies are being

00:25:42 developed, not just providing notification after the fact? Yes. Yes. Yes.

00:25:47 Yes. Yes. Do you commit to promptly responding to requests for briefings and

00:25:53 information requested by the committee and its designated staff? Yes. Yes. Yes.

00:25:59 Yes. Yes. You're all off to a really good start. I'll recognize Senator Kaine for

00:26:07 questioning. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and congratulations to all the nominees.

00:26:11 Mr. Fitzgerald, VCU is my hometown school, and I congratulate you on your son's

00:26:16 graduation tomorrow. Just sticking with you for a second, you know, it's

00:26:21 interesting the history of the U.S. not having an embassy in the Seychelles. It

00:26:25 was a cost savings move. Seychelles is a pretty important country. They're

00:26:31 classified as free in Freedom House's 2023 Freedom in the World Index of

00:26:36 Governance Conditions. Seychelles has enjoyed significant economic success.

00:26:40 It's long had the highest per capita GDP in Africa, classed by the World Bank as a

00:26:46 high-income country. I sometimes think in the U.S. we tend to focus a lot of

00:26:52 attention on problems without rewarding success, and that we might be better at

00:26:59 magnifying success if we work with the successful and shine a spotlight on

00:27:05 their success and then use that to create a desire in the region to be as

00:27:09 successful as this country. And so the fact that the Seychelles embassy was

00:27:13 closed in the 1990s just as a cost savings move and then served from

00:27:19 Mauritius is kind of a bit of evidence that I think fits into a pattern that we

00:27:24 have of not paying attention to successful countries. I'm so glad that

00:27:28 the Biden administration decided that this was a relationship that was worthy

00:27:32 of the U.S. reestablishing and having managed the responsibility from

00:27:37 Mauritius earlier in your career. I mean, you're the perfect person to have the

00:27:41 opportunity to reopen this, and I understand that this has also been very

00:27:44 well received by the Seychelles that the U.S. is upgrading the relationship in

00:27:48 this way. Am I correct about that? Yeah, thank you for the question, Senator. I

00:27:53 couldn't agree more. Yes, the host government is extremely pleased that we

00:27:58 have finally returned to the Seychelles. When I was credentialed there and

00:28:03 representing the United States on my visits, I never had a meeting when it was

00:28:07 not mentioned, "Why don't you have an embassy here?" I've spent a good part of

00:28:13 the last 15 years advocating for this and understand that that predates the

00:28:18 return to true constitutional democracy with the change of power between parties,

00:28:23 but it just simply became even more important since then, as you said, to

00:28:29 recognize success, to be part of that, to encourage it, and yeah, to find ways to

00:28:34 reward that. We have national interests there, and it's important to be there in

00:28:39 order to exercise those interests. I generally think that we do

00:28:43 much better in trying to encourage success if we're not lecturing others on

00:28:48 how to be successful, but if there are examples in their region of success that

00:28:53 they can look at and draw lessons from, and I am excited that you'll be in this

00:28:58 position with this upgraded responsibility. I'm sorry I want to come

00:29:03 to you now in your position on an oceans question. I'm the chair of the America

00:29:09 Subcommittee here on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and I'm really

00:29:12 worried about the illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing primarily by China,

00:29:18 primarily in the Pacific. Talk a little bit about, from the State Department

00:29:23 perspective, what you might do to prioritize dealing with that challenge.

00:29:28 Senator, thank you very much for that question. As you pointed out, IUU fishing

00:29:33 impacts ocean health. It is one of the largest causes of overfishing, and so it

00:29:40 means it is a food security threat to a number of countries. It's an economic

00:29:45 threat to our fishermen, and it's a national and human rights threat

00:29:50 because of forced labor and human rights abuses that take place. There's a lot, and

00:29:56 first of all, I really want to say thank you to Congress for the Maritime Safe

00:30:00 Act. We need a whole government approach, and that starts from when the fish gets

00:30:06 on a boat all the way to when it ends up on a consumer's plate here in the U.S.

00:30:11 And so there's a lot of work that we're trying to do through the interagency

00:30:16 process to elevate illegal, or IUU fishing. It would be a priority of mine. I would

00:30:25 look forward to working with this committee and Congress to see if there's

00:30:28 even more tools that we could use to address IUU. We would love to work with

00:30:33 you on that. One last question that I wasn't intending to ask, but you

00:30:36 mentioned space in your opening testimony, and obviously a concern about

00:30:40 international cooperation in space is with more and more satellites, more and

00:30:45 more platforms up in space, the risks of collisions that would damage investments,

00:30:51 but also create debris that could cause all kinds of other challenges, is the

00:30:56 classic kind of a problem for which there has to be some global norms and

00:31:00 rules and solutions to keep everybody's investments safe. What role, other

00:31:06 parts of the U.S. government are involved in this, but what role would your office

00:31:10 have in trying to find the right rules of the road? Sure. OES works with the

00:31:15 Department of Defense, NASA, FCC on issues around potential marine debris. OES's

00:31:22 specific role is around the peaceful use of space, so it's about trying to do

00:31:25 best practices in order to avoid collisions if orbital debris does take

00:31:31 place, you know, working with the country if it's our debris or if it's their

00:31:35 debris as well. So it's really around space diplomacy efforts. Okay, thank you.

00:31:40 I yield back, Mr. Chair. Thank you. Senator Ricketts. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:31:45 Dr. Kingsong, the University of Nebraska Medical Center has one of three

00:31:51 biocontainment facilities in the country and the only federally funded quarantine

00:31:55 space. This is not a commitment I'm asking you to make, I'm just saying that

00:31:59 if you're confirmed, I'd recommend visiting. They were instrumental in

00:32:04 taking some of Ebola patients from Africa, Americans who have been infected

00:32:07 with Ebola, and treating them here in the United States as well as some of the

00:32:11 first COVID patients as well. So certainly worth your time if you're

00:32:15 confirmed to make a visit. Not asking you to make a commitment, but keep in mind.

00:32:20 Ms. Harry, so within OES, the Office of Science and Technology Cooperation

00:32:27 oversees our STAs as I was talking about before. The U.S. has 60 of these with

00:32:32 countries like Canada and Japan. However, I'm sure you'll agree that the STA with

00:32:36 the People's Republic of China is different. In my opinion, frankly, China's

00:32:40 been playing for us for a fool for three decades now. It's an adversary. They

00:32:45 practice civil-military fusion to leverage their civilian and commercial

00:32:49 resource for military and defense purposes. And the evidence suggests

00:32:52 they're going to continue to look for opportunities to exploit partnerships

00:32:55 organized under the STA to advance their military objectives. In February, the

00:33:00 Biden administration and Beijing agreed to extend their STA for another six

00:33:04 months to continue negotiations. So I want to ask you a few simple questions I

00:33:08 hope we can agree on. Do you believe that Congress should be able to provide

00:33:13 the necessary oversight on an STA with the PRC? Senator, thank you very much for

00:33:19 your questions and expressing the concerns you have with STA with PRC.

00:33:24 I appreciate that. I am aware that there is a notification in the Appropriations

00:33:31 Bill, and yes, I do think that Congress should be consulted as we look through a

00:33:36 new renewal of the STA with PRC. Great. If the administration were to finalize

00:33:42 negotiations on a new STA with the PRC, do you believe Congress should receive

00:33:47 detailed justification on what was agreed to and why our national security

00:33:51 interests and why it is in our national security interests before the agreement

00:33:54 goes into effect? Senator, if confirmed, I would be happy to make sure that we are

00:34:01 fully briefing your staff and other interested staff in the STA. Great, thank

00:34:07 you. Do you believe that a specific text of any negotiated agreement should have

00:34:11 clear defined guardrails on what is permissible, what are permissible

00:34:15 research areas for collaboration, what are not, and would you agree that we want

00:34:18 to make clear that areas of dual-use concerns should be made off-limits?

00:34:22 Senator, if confirmed, I would want to talk a little bit to the State

00:34:29 Department and their lawyers about what can go into an STA. I don't know if

00:34:33 there's restrictions like that. I'm used to it kind of putting guardrails on how

00:34:38 the China and the U.S. would work together versus specifically saying what

00:34:42 could or could not do, so if confirmed, I'd be happy to get back to you

00:34:46 specifically on an STA including types of research that could or could not take

00:34:50 place. All right, great, thank you. I'm going to switch gears on you just a little bit

00:34:54 here. The U.S. Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs is responsible for formulating

00:34:59 and implementing U.S. policy on international issues concerning the

00:35:02 ocean, the Arctic, and the Antarctic. As you know, prior to Russia's illegal

00:35:06 invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. collaborated with Russia on Arctic climate research.

00:35:11 However, soon after the invasion, that collaboration rightfully stopped. Since

00:35:16 that time, Putin's war has continued to rage on with tens of thousands of

00:35:20 innocent Ukrainians have been killed, thousands of Ukrainian children have

00:35:23 been abducted, millions of Ukrainians have become refugees, and countless

00:35:26 Ukrainians have endured brutal human rights abuses. Do you believe that

00:35:31 it should remain our policy that the United States will not collaborate with

00:35:34 Russia on any research in the Arctic until Putin ends his war in Ukraine?

00:35:38 Senator, I agree with that, yes. Great, thank you. Russia obviously isn't the only

00:35:43 adversary we have to worry about in the Arctic. The PRC has a self-proclaimed

00:35:48 near-Arctic state. This is crazy. It has expanded its presence there as well. For decades,

00:35:54 Russia has actively excluded the PRC and other non-Arctic countries from playing

00:36:00 a role in its backyard. However, since Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine and

00:36:04 Putin's no-limits partnership with Xi, Russia has been forced to embrace an

00:36:08 increased PRC role in the Arctic. Last year, we saw the PRC begin to send

00:36:12 personnel to research stations located in Norway's Svalbard and in

00:36:18 Iceland after a lengthy hiatus. We saw a Russian Coast Guard sign an Arctic

00:36:23 cooperation agreement with the China Coast Guard. And we saw the PRC's Polar

00:36:27 Research Institute make startling announcement that it plans to deploy

00:36:30 listening devices on a large scale in the Arctic Ocean. In your view, how should

00:36:34 the United States respond to the PRC's growing research and other activities in

00:36:38 the Arctic, and how should U.S. policy on this question take into account increased

00:36:42 cooperation between Russia and the People's Republic of China? Senator,

00:36:45 thanks for that question. I appreciate it. So the U.S. is, first of all, about the

00:36:51 near-Arctic nation. I'm angry with you. I don't know what a near-Arctic

00:36:56 nation is. They made that term up, didn't they? Yeah, I believe that is the case.

00:37:00 You know, Arctic governance should be with the Arctic nations. The U.S.

00:37:07 is a very important Arctic nation. There is the Arctic Council, which has been

00:37:12 kind of the preeminent area for looking at how we do management in the Arctic.

00:37:17 With Russia's illegal invasion of the Ukraine, the U.S. and other countries

00:37:24 paused participation. There's efforts now to continue to do work but not engage in

00:37:30 anything that the Russians are taking part in. I think one of

00:37:38 the very significant things that the U.S. recently did was extend its

00:37:44 continental shelf. That gave us much more territory, actually, in the Arctic, which

00:37:48 means we have much more control over who can do scientific research, what can

00:37:52 actually take place in that. I think through the Arctic Council and other

00:37:56 work with Arctic states that don't include Russia, we have to have a

00:38:01 unified front about how we're going to approach the research that is taking

00:38:05 place and the threats that it poses to the other Arctic nations. Great, thank you

00:38:10 very much. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Thank you.

00:38:13 Dr. Gangonsong, first, thank you for mentioning the need for the five-year

00:38:19 reauthorization of the PEPFAR program. That's something that this committee is

00:38:25 very much interested in pursuing. We're disappointed we have a short-term

00:38:30 extension. We do believe we need the five years, so I'm glad to hear you mention

00:38:35 that. The position that you've been nominated to, Ambassador-at-Large for

00:38:39 Global Health, Security, and Diplomacy, there will be an interesting relationship

00:38:45 that I would like to get your views on. There's a turf issue between the State

00:38:51 Department and USAID on health issues. Your responsibility is to the State

00:38:56 Department directly. We had the USAID that's engaged also in health care

00:39:01 issues, and there have been some concern about the mission creep between the two

00:39:08 divisions, the full division and USAID. Can you just tell me how you plan to

00:39:14 work with USAID so that the turf differences does not at all impact on

00:39:21 our ability to be effective in dealing with global health issues? Thank you.

00:39:27 Thank you, Senator. I think I want to assure you that it's very clear once the

00:39:33 Bureau was launched that what our role will be. We will be leading in three key

00:39:39 areas. First of all is to, as I said earlier, lead with diplomatic engagement

00:39:45 with all global health security issues, related issues. Secondly, to elevate

00:39:50 global health security as part of our foreign policy. And lastly, to coordinate

00:39:57 our foreign assistance so that it can help advance our international health

00:40:02 cooperation and global health security. If you look at the recently launched global

00:40:06 health security strategy that the White House just released, on page 32 of that

00:40:12 document, it clearly defines the roles and responsibilities of several agencies.

00:40:17 It's a beautiful document, great strategy, and in there it outlines 13

00:40:22 functions of what the State Department should be doing in the overall space of

00:40:28 global health security. So it's very clear that through the interagency

00:40:32 collaboration, constantly engaging with USAID, CDC, HHS, and NIH, we'll be able to

00:40:39 leverage more effectively and coordinate our global health security functions. Of

00:40:44 course, one of the areas that will help is burden sharing, to have our allies

00:40:49 step up and do more than they currently are doing in this global area. The United

00:40:54 States is by far the leader on resources. Senator Coons, who chairs the subcommittee

00:41:01 on appropriations that deal with foreign aid, will tell you that he doesn't have

00:41:06 enough money. So if we only have a limited dollars available, the

00:41:11 competition between monies going into direct programs at USAID or going into

00:41:15 your agency are going to be in discussion. How do you assure us that

00:41:20 that discussions will be positive and that it will not deter from the working

00:41:27 relationship between you and USAID? Absolutely. Within the new bureau, the

00:41:34 Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy, there's a program side of it,

00:41:39 which is the PEPFAR, Chairman, which you alluded to, and that has existed for the

00:41:45 past 21 years with clarity of roles and responsibilities. The global health

00:41:51 security side of that, the new bureau, is mainly around policy coordination and

00:41:57 diplomacy, leading with diplomacy. I'll give you a good example to

00:42:01 substantiate that. Last year in February, if you recall, there was a Marburg outbreak

00:42:06 in Equatorial Guinea in Central Africa. None of our agencies were present in

00:42:12 that country. The only presence we had was our ambassador, and he played a

00:42:17 critical role of engaging with the leadership, the political leadership of

00:42:20 that country, to enable us to deploy assets to respond to that threat, which

00:42:26 includes CDC deployment, USAID deployment, and WHO. When discussions were tense,

00:42:33 where the government of that country said we don't need any further

00:42:36 cooperation, our mission and ambassador was the only person in country that

00:42:41 broke that relationship. So that's the kind of coordination and

00:42:45 leveraging that we hope the new bureau will enable us to be more effective in our

00:42:51 global health security response. Thank you. Ms. Hurst, since the Civil War in

00:42:56 2009 in Sri Lanka, there's still been an issue of reconciliation and

00:43:02 accountability. There's concern about corruption in the country. There's

00:43:06 concern in regards to human rights. The Draconian Online Safety Act is looked at

00:43:12 as trying to stifle any dissent in the country. So human rights are going to be

00:43:16 front and center in our expectation of our mission in Sri Lanka. Can you assure

00:43:22 us that that is going to be a key priority of the mission and that the U.S.

00:43:28 mission will be there to speak out on behalf of those individuals whose

00:43:33 voices are being difficult to be heard in the country today? Senator, thank you

00:43:40 very much for your question and I share your concern and your commitment to

00:43:43 human rights. And if I am confirmed, I will put accountability, governance,

00:43:48 anti-corruption efforts at the forefront of what our mission will be doing,

00:43:52 including working with partners and civil society across Sri Lanka. Thank

00:43:56 you. Senator Barrasso. Thanks so much, Mr. Chairman. Senator Shaheen, if you'd just

00:44:07 come in if you'd like to go first, that's fine. Okay, thanks. I'd like to talk about

00:44:14 the World Health Organization, if we could. The Biden administration has vowed to

00:44:19 reform the World Health Organization, but it threw away its leverage early on, in

00:44:24 my opinion. The administration, against the advice of many, rejoined the

00:44:28 World Health Organization, gave it 200 million dollars without insisting on a

00:44:32 single reform. In a few weeks, the administration is expected to commit the

00:44:37 United States to two international agreements that would expand the

00:44:41 World Health Organization's authority during a global pandemic. Last week, I

00:44:46 joined my Republican colleagues in calling on President Biden to reject

00:44:49 these agreements, what I believe are harmful. Yesterday, the UK announced that

00:44:55 they will refuse to sign the World Health Organization's pandemic accord,

00:44:59 saying that they will only support the adoption if it is firmly in the UK

00:45:04 national interest and respects national sovereignty. December 13th, last year,

00:45:10 during a hearing held by the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic,

00:45:13 you said, "This administration is firmly committed to ensuring that the

00:45:18 World Health Organization implements a comprehensive set of organizational

00:45:23 reforms, particularly to strengthen its governance, its budgetary and financial

00:45:28 management processes, and to improve oversight to strengthen the

00:45:32 organization's efficiency and effectiveness." You know, instead of

00:45:36 focusing on reforming the World Health Organization, the administration is

00:45:38 choosing to hand over U.S. sovereignty to them. We are the United States, not the

00:45:44 United Nations. So the question is, do you commit to ensuring that U.S. sovereignty

00:45:49 is not infringed upon? Senator, let me respond in the affirmative.

00:45:57 Absolutely, the sovereignty and security of the United States will not be

00:46:05 undermined in this negotiation process. We have been very insistent that there

00:46:11 are two articles in the pandemic accord discussion that I would like to just

00:46:16 reiterate. Article 3 states clearly that WHO has no authority over sovereign

00:46:25 states. Absolutely not. Article 24 of that same negotiation further expands and it

00:46:32 states clearly that neither the Secretary of WHO nor the Director General

00:46:38 has any authority over any sovereign state in the areas of dictating, telling

00:46:45 them what to do in terms of mandate use of any tools, including vaccines, masks,

00:46:52 lockdown, etc. I think it's absolutely very clear in Article 24. We will oppose

00:46:58 any attempt or any perception of that accord that seeks to undermine or is

00:47:06 perceived as going to undermine the sovereignty of the United States. I will

00:47:11 just end, Senator, by saying that the sole purpose for us in the discussion is to

00:47:17 protect our national interests, to protect our national interests. And there

00:47:21 are three things that we are seeking to achieve in this negotiation. One is to

00:47:25 ensure that we have capacity globally that can allow us to easily detect,

00:47:30 prevent, and control and respond to disease outbreaks as we know it. A

00:47:35 disease outbreak anywhere in the world becomes a threat right here. One million

00:47:40 Americans died because of COVID-19. Secondly, is to ensure that we have

00:47:46 access in a timely fashion to biologic materials, including specimens, data that

00:47:52 will allow us to develop vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics that will

00:47:56 protect us. And lastly, the ability to distribute those resources in an

00:48:03 equitable manner. So following the UK's announcement just yesterday about their

00:48:07 refusal to sign, is the UK alone able to block the passage of the

00:48:12 Accords? If not, how many other member countries would need to oppose it in

00:48:17 order for the Accords to fail? The Accords, Senator, is still being discussed,

00:48:22 including as of this morning, about several issues, especially areas related

00:48:28 to intellectual property, technology transfer, pathogen access, and sharing, as

00:48:35 I indicated. This Accord has been going on the discussions for about two years,

00:48:39 so we remain hopeful that countries that are discussing will see value in a

00:48:47 collective security and learn the lessons, as Chairman said, of what COVID

00:48:52 taught us about our common vulnerability. So we just don't know exactly who is

00:48:58 going to oppose it or not, but we have to show our leadership. As I said in my

00:49:02 introduction, this is the moment for us to show the leadership. We have been a

00:49:06 global leader over the years, and this is not a moment for us to relent our

00:49:11 leadership. Mr. Chair, I have one quick last question, and it's to Kelly Adams-Smith.

00:49:17 Moldova's recent almost exclusively relying on Russian energy. Tuesday,

00:49:22 Norway and Moldova signed an agreement to tighten cooperation in their

00:49:27 energy sector. Can you tell me the current status of the Moldova's energy

00:49:30 grid? Thank you very much for the question, Senator. It is true that Moldova

00:49:37 was a hundred percent dependent on Russia for its energy sources. After the

00:49:43 Ukrainian, the Russian reinvasion of Ukraine, it became clear that that was no

00:49:47 longer possible, and the Moldovan government, with assistance from the

00:49:52 United States and European allies, has made some successes in becoming less

00:49:59 dependent. The energy grid, the electricity grid of Moldova, is now

00:50:05 hooked up to the European grid. USAID is funding an electrical line between

00:50:14 Romania and Moldova, and Moldova is now also buying for the first time

00:50:22 non-Russian gas, which is an incredibly positive development. Thank you, Mr.

00:50:29 Chairman. Senator Shaheen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and good morning.

00:50:34 Congratulations to each of you on your nominations. Ms. Adam-Smith, I want to

00:50:39 begin with you because I had the opportunity to travel to Moldova for the

00:50:43 first time back in February, and I was very impressed with the commitment of

00:50:49 the Moldovans we talked to about joining the EU and looking west, and concern

00:50:55 about what's happening in the war in Ukraine and what Russia is doing. I also

00:51:00 met with President Sandu, she's now, and she shared her focus on judicial reforms

00:51:08 and how important she thinks that is ahead of the upcoming presidential

00:51:11 elections. So, and I think rightfully so, that without a reformed judiciary it will

00:51:19 be very hard for Moldova to continue the reforms that they need to make. So, can

00:51:24 you talk about what more we can do, what more you would do, if confirmed, to help

00:51:29 support Moldova as they're looking at these, particularly the judicial reforms?

00:51:35 Senator, thank you very much for the question. Our assistance has focused on

00:51:41 helping the Moldovan government improve its rule of law and fight anti-

00:51:45 corruption, especially in terms of increasing the independence of the

00:51:50 judicial sector. We have assisted the Moldovan government in creating a system

00:51:55 for pre-vetting of prosecutors and judges and created a model court system.

00:52:00 And if I'm confirmed, we will continue these efforts, but also focus on working

00:52:05 with creating space for free and independent media and working with civil

00:52:10 society, because those are absolutely essential in holding the government to

00:52:15 account on its anti-corruption path. The other thing we heard concerns about is

00:52:21 the amount of Russian disinformation that is being spread throughout Moldova.

00:52:27 Just this week there was a Politico article that pointed out that Russia is

00:52:32 responsible for circulating deepfake videos of President Sandu to try and

00:52:37 undermine her re-election campaign. So, is there more that we should be doing to

00:52:42 help the Moldovans protect themselves from this kind of disinformation?

00:52:49 Thank you, Senator, for the question. Russian malign influence takes many forms in

00:52:55 Moldova. There is this disinformation and propaganda. There's also energy

00:53:00 coercion, hybrid and cyber attacks. There's also conventional threats. Our

00:53:07 assistance is focused on helping the government increase its resilience

00:53:14 towards this disinformation. I think they're learning a lot. They learned a

00:53:19 lot from last year's regional or local elections. And is there more that we can

00:53:25 do? Absolutely. I believe that we should use all the tools in our toolkit. If

00:53:31 there is evidence of election tampering or use of propaganda or deepfakes that

00:53:39 interfere with the running of free and fair elections, we should consider using

00:53:43 sanctions and visa bans and to send a powerful signal that this cannot happen

00:53:49 in Moldova. Thank you. I really appreciate that and hopefully the Global

00:53:54 Engagement Center can help us as we're thinking about how we can help other

00:53:57 countries. Ms. Horst, the People's Republic of China has considerable

00:54:02 economic leverage over Sri Lanka because of its infrastructure investments and

00:54:07 loans. Now I was pleased to see a recent US investment in Sri Lanka's port

00:54:13 capabilities, but it's really a drop in the bucket compared to existing Chinese

00:54:19 capital in the country. So can you talk about what the implications are of

00:54:23 China's ability to leverage infrastructure investments and other

00:54:28 energy, other issues in the country, and what more we should be thinking about as

00:54:34 we're trying to provide a counterbalance to what China is doing? Senator, thank you

00:54:41 very much for that question and it gets to the heart of the Indo-Pacific

00:54:45 strategy and Sri Lanka is an incredibly important member or an incredibly

00:54:49 important part of that not only because of the geography but also because it is

00:54:53 a democracy with an open economy. And so the investment by DFC that you named is

00:54:59 a great example of how we're using tools that the United States government has

00:55:03 to invest and show a different model of investment that is different than what

00:55:08 the PRC might offer. This is a half a billion dollar investment in what we see

00:55:14 as Sri Lanka's future. It is transparent, it will promote good governance, and this

00:55:19 is exactly the kind of alternative that we feel will just demonstrate to Sri

00:55:24 Lankans that they have a choice and we think that our model is better. Thank you.

00:55:29 I'm out of time but I just returned from a trip to the Indo-Pacific about a month

00:55:34 ago and one of the things we heard in the countries that we visited where

00:55:38 China has tried to make those kinds of investments is that they would rather do

00:55:42 business with the United States because for all the reasons you just gave, but

00:55:46 unfortunately we have not come to always come to the table in ways that can

00:55:52 provide the support that those countries need. So thank you, I appreciate your

00:55:56 comments and I don't know if you want to respond to that before I'm out of time.

00:56:01 Senator, I'm confirmed I will find ways to bring all of the resources that the

00:56:05 United States and our friends and allies have to help continue along these

00:56:08 efforts. Thank you very much, thank you all. Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Mr.

00:56:13 Chairman, and let me start by congratulating all of you on your

00:56:16 nominations and I just want to second what Senator Shaheen said with respect to

00:56:23 Moldova and others. Look forward to working with you, Ms. Adam-Smith, if you're

00:56:29 confirmed. I do want to pick up on the Sri Lanka question. I have a long-term

00:56:34 affinity to Sri Lanka and I visited Sri Lanka last year on the occasion of the

00:56:40 75th anniversary of US-Sri Lankan relations and I believe Ambassador Julie

00:56:46 Chung has been doing a great job and I know you will as well if you're

00:56:50 confirmed, Ms. Horst. I was pleased to see the DFC commitment. Could you speak a

00:56:57 little bit about how Sri Lanka is progressing with respect to the IMF

00:57:03 reform package? As you know, this was a long time in coming. There have been

00:57:08 serious economic issues. How do you gauge progress with respect to the IMF reform

00:57:15 package? Senator Van Hollen, thank you and thank you. I know you do have a very

00:57:19 special relationship to South Asia and to Sri Lanka so I appreciate very much

00:57:23 your interest. The IMF is working closely with partners and with the Sri Lankan

00:57:29 government to make sure that Sri Lanka can get back on better economic footing.

00:57:33 We are making sure that any debt negotiations treat all partners fairly

00:57:38 and that are transparent and there's an element of the IMF program that also

00:57:43 looks at governance to make sure that any IMF programs that come in also take

00:57:48 care of the most vulnerable and are spread fairly. So if I am confirmed, I

00:57:53 will continue to work and follow in the mighty footsteps of Ambassador Chung to

00:57:57 make sure that we continue to work with the IMF to help Sri Lanka on economic

00:58:02 footing. Well, thank you and you know while I was there, one of the programs

00:58:06 that we've got that I think was appreciated was greater transparency in

00:58:11 the budgeting process and look forward to continuing our conversation on that

00:58:16 piece as well, which is important the United States, important the IMF and

00:58:20 important to others. And I do want to also, I know Senator Cardin raised the

00:58:24 issues of human rights. I had a number of conversations about progress towards

00:58:29 transitional justice and so I do look forward to continuing that conversation

00:58:34 as well. Ms. Sari, it's great to have a Marylander as part of the group.

00:58:40 Congratulations. As you well know, as we seek to make a transition toward

00:58:46 cleaner energy, critical minerals are a critical part of this. The United States

00:58:51 really got caught, you know, decades behind China in terms of sourcing of

00:58:58 minerals, the developing of the batteries, but one of the sources of some of these

00:59:06 minerals are these undersea nodules. So maybe that's an opportunity, but

00:59:13 clearly there are also environmental risks. So my question to you is how do

00:59:18 you think about that, and especially in light of the fact that the United States

00:59:23 is not part of the Law of the Seas Convention? Does that put us at a

00:59:29 disadvantage as part in this conversation? Senator, thank you so much

00:59:33 for the question. The U.S. not being part of the Law of the Seas actually does put

00:59:39 us at a disadvantage. There's an international seabed authority that is

00:59:43 responsible for this type of deep-sea mining. The U.S. is able to be an observer

00:59:49 on it, and the U.S. has worked very hard to make sure if deep-sea mining does go

00:59:54 forward that it's done in a precautionary manner with strong

00:59:58 protections for the environment. But because we can only be an observer, we

01:00:03 don't have as much influence, and it's the PRC that is moving most quickly

01:00:08 forward with development. And I can tell you that whenever we try to

01:00:16 exert something under the Law of the Sea because we're not a member, the PRC does

01:00:20 not feel that it needs to follow our advice. So if confirmed, I would be

01:00:25 working very hard on this issue. OES tries to work on the recycling aspects

01:00:29 and tries to make sure that any type of critical mineral is done in an environment,

01:00:34 mining is done in an environmentally sustainable manner. I appreciate that. I've

01:00:38 long believed it was a mistake for us not to be part of the Law of the Sea

01:00:42 Convention. I hope, you know, Congress will get with it given the

01:00:46 disadvantages we face. Ambassador Kangasong, it is wonderful to see you

01:00:52 again. The last time we were in person may have been in South Africa on the 20th

01:00:59 anniversary of PEPFAR. So thank you for your leadership there. And as you

01:01:05 know, many of us believe that the success of PEPFAR can be

01:01:11 built on in terms of creating a preventive health and health

01:01:17 infrastructure. Could you talk a little bit about how we might leverage the

01:01:22 success of PEPFAR into other areas of health? Thank you. Thank you, Senator.

01:01:30 Good to see you again. And thank you all for your support in securing the

01:01:36 one-year reauthorization of PEPFAR to next March, which as the chairman said, we

01:01:43 look forward to working with you to reauthorizing it for a full, clean five

01:01:48 years. Senator, over the past 21 years, PEPFAR has been extremely successful and

01:01:56 impactful in saving more than 25 million lives, preventing 5.5 million children

01:02:02 born free from HIV infection. But in addition to that, it has built a large

01:02:07 platform that is currently being used when needs arise in responding to other

01:02:13 disease threats like cholera outbreaks, like Ebola outbreaks, the Marburg and

01:02:21 Mpox currently going on in DRC. So we should be very, very proud of that. I mean,

01:02:27 this has not taken away resources from PEPFAR by leveraging those systems and

01:02:32 institutions that we already have in-country. And that is what I believe

01:02:37 PEPFAR should continue to do. That is, stay focused on its mission to bring HIV

01:02:43 AIDS to an end as a public health threat by the year 2030, which means bringing

01:02:48 down the rates of new infections down to below 90% compared to 2010. But with that

01:02:54 platform, given the current context of rapidly emerging diseases, we continue to

01:02:59 countries, partner countries, continue to use that. To get that goal of bringing

01:03:05 HIV AIDS to an end as a public health threat, as all of us discussed when we're

01:03:10 in South Africa, we need to look at the priority populations that we need to

01:03:14 invest in more and be very laser-focused in adolescent girls and young women and

01:03:19 bring down the rates of infections among those in children and in key populations.

01:03:24 We put our resources there so that we maintain the gains that we've achieved

01:03:27 over the years and accelerate so that we can absolutely effectively get to 2030.

01:03:32 Thank you. Thank you for all your good work. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Senator Schatz.

01:03:36 Thank you, Chairman, and thank you to all of the nominees for your willingness to

01:03:40 serve. Ms. Sari, good to see you again. I want to talk to you first about IUU. I

01:03:48 just want to understand how you envision working to implement some of the tasks

01:03:56 recommended by the IUU working group between agencies, between NOAA, between

01:04:01 state. There's a kind of cross-agency coordination that is

01:04:07 necessary, and I'm wondering how you intend to prioritize your tasks. Senator,

01:04:12 thank you very much for the question. I know you've been a longtime person

01:04:16 trying to combat IUU phishing, so I appreciate your leadership on that. I

01:04:20 think, first of all, the Maritime Safe Act, by creating an interagency group, and OES

01:04:26 is the current chair of that, has been incredibly important. I think sometimes

01:04:30 people hear about illegal unregulated fisheries, and they think, "Oh,

01:04:35 it's just an environmental issue," and it is not. It touches on everything. It's a

01:04:38 human rights issue. It's a food security issue. It's also an environmental

01:04:43 security issue. So we really need to, through this interagency partnership,

01:04:47 have everybody have very concrete responsibilities, measurable outcomes, and

01:04:52 take action. Even within the Department of State, we need to work very closely

01:04:56 with INL, with DRL, and then also with EAP, where most of IUU is

01:05:05 either taking place or the countries that are involved in IUU phishing as

01:05:09 well. I would just add to that, there's a line of effort that is purely

01:05:14 at the diplomatic level. In other words, even if we didn't care

01:05:19 about the kind of conservation and ecological impacts here, even if there

01:05:23 were no economic aspect that mattered to us, it's important to our friends and

01:05:28 allies in the Pacific in particular. We just had a good meeting

01:05:34 with a number of ambassadors from Pacific Island nations, and IUU always

01:05:39 comes up. So I'm wondering if there are some kind of small-bore ways we can

01:05:45 start to provide assistance, because I am... Look, you gave a really smart and

01:05:51 cogent answer. The problem is that if I'm meeting with the ambassador from Palau

01:05:56 or Fiji or the Federated States of Micronesia, they're not sure how quickly

01:06:01 any of that is going to happen. That's a lot of three- and four-letter agency

01:06:05 names, and they're kind of going, "So is help on the way or not?" So what can we do

01:06:10 in the short run? So I think there's the shipwriter program that's taking place

01:06:15 in the Pacific Islands, I think has been very effective, and that's where local

01:06:21 law enforcement rides aboard with Coast Guard and can go and enforce with areas.

01:06:26 The state is also working very closely with USAID. Technical assistance, and

01:06:33 if confirmed, I'd be very happy to work with you and your staff and

01:06:39 work with the Pacific Islands to figure out what more kind of technical

01:06:43 assistance we have. Good governance is also going to be important. I actually

01:06:48 think, Senator, one of the things we also need to do, diplomacy is important. I

01:06:52 don't think Americans want to have illegal fishing on their plate, so we

01:06:56 need to actually figure out working with the other partners, too, about how we're

01:07:00 going to stop those chains and have the countries of origins of where fish can

01:07:04 take place be part of that dialogue as we think about a whole-of-government

01:07:08 approach. I would just add that I think, and I am satisfied right now that

01:07:14 people are monitoring technological developments, but I just do think that

01:07:19 there could be a moment at which we sort of move from we've got to be, we got to

01:07:24 people, we have to have ships, we have to be underway totally, to a lot of this is

01:07:31 about monitoring. A lot of this is about people knowing that we have eyes on them

01:07:35 because there are extremely rare situations where this would get kinetic,

01:07:41 and so I think there may be cheaper ways to have eyes and presence throughout the

01:07:46 Pacific. I know that the Navy is thinking along these lines as well, but drone

01:07:51 technology, satellite technology has come a very, very long way, and the bureaucracy,

01:07:56 which is, I think, moving in the right direction, understandably is implementing

01:08:00 a plan that was many, many years in the making, and so I just want you to be

01:08:05 receptive to a disruptive technology and how you'd integrate that into a kind of

01:08:10 the machinery that's already on its way. Senator, I would be very interested in

01:08:14 that. I'd be happy to work with your office as confirmed. I think this is, I,

01:08:19 what happens aboard these illegal fishing boats is just, it's awful.

01:08:24 Tremendous human rights violation. Anything that we can do to stop it as

01:08:28 soon as possible, I think, is something we should explore. Thank you very much. Let

01:08:34 me follow up on Senator Schatz's point and others that raised this illegal

01:08:38 fishing issue. It's well beyond the Pacific nations or the Asian Pacific. I

01:08:43 was in Ecuador, and the PRC vessels there are outrageous, and some of the richest

01:08:49 fishing areas in the world, and you're absolutely right. It's not only an

01:08:56 environmental disaster and abuse of rights, but it is also a human rights

01:09:02 violation on the way they use motherships and have forced labor for

01:09:06 lengthy periods of time. And you, we do need a strategy that will work in the

01:09:11 short term as well as the long term. The technology is there to be able to track

01:09:16 these vessels. They have to communicate. We can track the communications. They're

01:09:22 violating laws. We need international enforcement, and that's not going to

01:09:26 happen without U.S. leadership. So I just really want to underscore, as you've

01:09:30 heard from so many members on this committee, that that has to be a top

01:09:34 priority, and we're looking forward to your suggestions as to how we can put a

01:09:39 spotlight on this so more Americans understand what's going on, because it is

01:09:44 the, ultimately as consumers, we can put a lot of pressure on this globally, so we

01:09:50 need to do that. I also want to mention the area that you mentioned in your

01:09:55 comments about plastics and the negotiations in regards to

01:09:59 international treaty, the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee,

01:10:02 and you'll play a major role in that. There's a lot of interest in trying to

01:10:07 have an aggressive policy led by the United States, and this treaty might give

01:10:10 us an opportunity to do that on dealing with the plastics issues in our waters.

01:10:15 So there are two areas that are a very high priority to our committee. I want to

01:10:21 ask one additional question in regards to human rights, whether it's Moldova,

01:10:26 which needs to move towards the EU, needs to protect itself from Russia's

01:10:33 aggression. We have the Transnistria issue that ultimately has to be resolved, and

01:10:38 we have a weakness in their judicial system and prosecutorial system in which

01:10:43 the EU and US can help. So Adam Smith, I just really want to get your commitment

01:10:50 that we need to work with Moldova to try to strengthen their internal

01:10:55 institutions so they can transition closer to EU accessions and to the West.

01:11:03 Mr. Senator, thank you very, very much for that question. I absolutely commit to

01:11:10 working with this committee and working as hard as I can to ensure that Moldova

01:11:17 is taking, is resilient enough to take the steps that it needs to take to take

01:11:24 the reforms and become an EU member after a very rigorous accession process.

01:11:30 I firmly believe that it is going through this process that will enable

01:11:36 the country to reach the future that it wants. It's not going to be easy, it's not

01:11:42 going to be short, and they are going to need the United States and European

01:11:46 allies working together to make sure that the country is able to take all the

01:11:51 steps along the way to become an EU member state. And there's a strong

01:11:56 diaspora community that can help in this transition, so it's another area that we

01:12:01 might want to try to develop that could help Moldova along this path. Thank

01:12:08 you very much for that comment, Senator. Absolutely true, the Moldovan diaspora in

01:12:13 the United States, more than 50,000 people who are a great resource

01:12:20 for the Moldovan government. If I'm confirmed, I intend to work with allies

01:12:26 and partners across Europe as well to ensure that we're activating the

01:12:30 diaspora in those countries as well to give as much assistance and advice and

01:12:37 support to the Moldovan government, which needs the human capacity to enact

01:12:42 all of these reforms. And as you said, the Moldovan diaspora can be an important

01:12:47 source of strength for them. Ms. Hertz, I'll just follow up on our questionings on the

01:12:51 human rights in Sri Lanka. I want your commitment to keep us informed as to the

01:12:58 progress you are making in dealing with the accountability issues, to deal with

01:13:04 the ability to express dissent of government with this recent law that was

01:13:09 passed, and what our mission is doing to advance the basic freedoms for the

01:13:15 people of Sri Lanka. Senator Cardin, if I'm confirmed, you have my commitment to

01:13:20 work with your committee and Congress to make sure that we are holding everyone

01:13:25 accountable for the international standards that we want them to adhere to.

01:13:29 Senator Ricketts. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Ms. Hertz, I wanted to follow up

01:13:36 on just the conversations we'd had about the PRC. The Indian Ocean obviously is

01:13:44 critical to the PRC's strategic and economic interests, as well as geopolitical

01:13:49 rivalry with India. Increasingly, PRC research vessels with ties to the PLA

01:13:54 Navy have conducted sweeping surveys of the undersea floor in the Indian Ocean.

01:13:58 These types of ocean surveys are carried out by vessels that have research

01:14:02 applications for energy resources and marine environments. However, the data can

01:14:06 also be used for military purposes, including how to maneuver and obscure

01:14:10 submarines during a conflict. According to CSIS, the 13 PRC vessels

01:14:16 undertaking the bulk of the survey and research activity in the Indian Ocean

01:14:19 since 2020 all have links to the PLA, and all display suspicious behavior,

01:14:24 including docking at PLA military ports or temporary turning off their tracking

01:14:28 devices. In January, Sri Lanka declared a year-long moratorium on PRC research

01:14:33 vessels entering the waters. Do you believe the presence of PRC research

01:14:37 vessels in the Indian Ocean poses a threat to the national security

01:14:40 interests of the United States and our partner allies in the region?

01:14:44 Senator, thank you very much. We share your concern about what PRC

01:14:51 research vessels could be doing in the Indian Ocean, which is why cooperation

01:14:56 with Sri Lanka on maritime domain awareness is a key part of our security

01:15:01 assistance. It allows the Sri Lankans to have the capability and the technology

01:15:05 to be able to patrol their own waters and help defend their sovereignty. And if

01:15:08 I'm confirmed, we will continue to work with the Sri Lankans to build their own

01:15:12 capabilities. So if confirmed, will you commit to work then to ensure the

01:15:16 moratorium is maintained in place as well? So we are working very closely to

01:15:21 make sure that there's fair access to ports for all ships. So you don't want to

01:15:28 keep the moratorium on the PRC vessels out? We would want to

01:15:32 make sure that we are working with them. We have huge concerns about PRC vessels

01:15:37 and we have asked for that moratorium. We think it is in Sri Lanka's best

01:15:40 interests. Okay, great. And then I just finally wrap up by saying, Ms. Adam-Smith,

01:15:45 Steve King, former ambassador to the Czech Republic, you were his deputy chief

01:15:49 mission, had nothing but high praise for you and gave you his highest

01:15:52 recommendation. Mr. Senator, that is so nice to hear. Thank you very much.

01:15:59 Mr. Chairman? The record of the committee will remain open to close of business

01:16:03 tomorrow for members who may be asking questions for the record. For any

01:16:07 questions for the record directed to any one of you, we appreciate you try to

01:16:10 respond to that as thoroughly and quickly as possible so that we can

01:16:15 complete our work in the committee in an expeditious way. Again, with our thanks,

01:16:21 our hearing will be adjourned. Thank you.

01:16:27 Thank you.

01:16:30 [BLANK_AUDIO]

Ben Cardin Leads Senate Foreign Relations Committee Confirmation Hearing For Pending Nominees

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