Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi Statement on Biden Administration Supplemental Funding Request

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Ranking Member of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, issued the following statement regarding the Biden Administration’s supplemental funding request from Congress to advance our national security and support U.S. allies and partners.

“American leadership means standing up for allies and partners in their greatest time of need. The request for supplemental funding by the Biden Administration demonstrates that America’s commitment to our partners is unshakable. It is also a reminder that American leadership is truly global by working to support allies and partners across the Indo-Pacific from CCP aggression. It is essential that we provide credible and sustainable alternatives to CCP financing and promote sustainable development around the world. I call on my colleagues in Congress, on both sides of the aisle, to quickly vote to pass this critical funding and provide our global partners the urgent support they need.”

Supplemental funding requested by the Biden Administration that would directly improve America’s competitiveness with the CCP includes:

Strengthening Security in the Indo-Pacific

1. Security assistance for capacity building to address ongoing and emerging threats to critical allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific. This funding will bolster deterrence and support key allies and partners as they face an increasingly assertive PRC, and will support partners transitioning off of Russian military equipment.
2. The United States’ Submarine Industrial Base, through improvements and infrastructure work at the Navy’s four public shipyards and increasing production rates and submarine availability through initiatives in supplier development, shipbuilder and supplier infrastructure, workforce development, technology advancements, government oversight, and strategic sourcing. This funding will accelerate build and sustainment rates for attack submarines, one of our most effective capabilities for maintaining deterrence, in order to meet U.S. military requirements. 
3. AUKUS. While this funding for our submarine industrial base is necessary to meet U.S. national needs, these investments will also support U.S. commitments under AUKUS – our trilateral security partnership with Australia and the United Kingdom – the first major deliverable of which was our historic decision to support Australia acquiring conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines. Australia has also committed to provide a proportionate financial investment in the U.S. submarine industrial base to accelerate the delivery of Virginia class submarines.

Providing Alternatives to Coercive PRC Financing in Developing Countries

1. To provide a credible alternative to the People’s Republic of China’s coercive and unsustainable financing for developing countries around the world, the Administration’s request will advance high-leverage solutions through the international financial institutions. This historic U.S. action will support the mobilization of $200 billion of new financing for developing countries backed by our partners and allies. The requested funding will:
2. Materially expand development finance to the countries hard hit by the spillovers of Russia’s war through funding for the World Bank.
3. Unlock up to $21 billion in new transparent lending with no additional appropriations through the authorization to lend to two International Monetary Fund (IMF) trust funds.

Additionally, the Administration is seeking authorization to ensure the IMF can respond quickly to future global financial shocks and restore stability to both economies and markets, minimizing negative spillovers that could affect the U.S. economy, by providing the authority to extend U.S. participation in the IMF's New Arrangements to Borrow mechanism.