Sec. 1276. ASSESSMENT OF CHALLENGES TO IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PARTNERSHIP AMONG AUSTRALIA, THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND THE UNITED STATES

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## SEC. 1276 ASSESSMENT OF CHALLENGES TO IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PARTNERSHIP AMONG AUSTRALIA, THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND THE UNITED STATES ###

(a)In General The Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter into an agreement with a federally funded research and development center for the conduct of an independent assessment of resourcing, policy, and process challenges to implementing the partnership among Australia, the United Kingdom, and United States (commonly known as the “AUKUS partnership”) announced on September 21, 2021. ###

(b)Matters to Be Considered In conducting the assessment required by subsection (a), the federally funded research and development center shall consider the following with respect to each of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States: ####

(1)Potential resourcing and personnel shortfalls. ####

(2)Information sharing, including foreign disclosure policy and processes. ####

(3)Statutory, regulatory, and other policies and processes. ####

(4)Intellectual property, including patents. ####

(5)Export controls, including technology transfer and protection. ####

(6)Security protocols and practices, including personnel, operational, physical, facility, cybersecurity, counterintelligence, marking and classifying information, and handling and transmission of classified material. ####

(7)Industrial base implications specifically including options to expand the United States submarine and nuclear power industrial base to meet United States and Australia requirements. ####

(8)Alternatives that would significantly accelerate Australia’s national security, including— #####

(A)interim submarine options to include leasing or conveyance of legacy United States submarines for Australia’s use; or #####

(B)the conveyance of B-21 bombers. ####

(9)Any other matter the Secretary considers appropriate. ###

(c)Recommendations The federally funded research and development center selected to conduct the assessment under this section shall include, as part of such assessment, recommendations for improvements to resourcing, policy, and process challenges to implementing the AUKUS partnership. ###

(d)Report ####

(1)In general Not later than January 1, 2024, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees, the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a report that includes an unaltered copy of such assessment, together with the views of the Secretary on the assessment and on the recommendations included in the assessment pursuant to subsection (c). ####

(2)Form of report The report required by paragraph

(1)shall be submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified annex.