Regional China Officer Program Unit

(a) Authorization of establishment The Secretary shall establish within the Office of China Coordination of the Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs of the Department a Regional China Officer Program Unit (in this section referred to as the Unit). (b) Personnel The Unit shall be comprised of— (1) one Director; and (2) not fewer than 20 forward-deployed Foreign Service Officers assigned to United States diplomatic or consular posts or detailed to the foreign ministry of an ally, to be known as Regional China Officers (in this section referred to as RCOs), who shall be responsible for— (A) monitoring and reporting on activities of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the region of his or her responsibility, including in the commercial, development, finance, critical infrastructure, technology, and military domains, including projects associated with the PRC’s Belt and Road Initiative, Global Security Initiative, and Global Development Initiative; and (B) advising united states embassy personnel, diplomatic allies and partners, and host countries on how to understand and address PRC activities globally and locally. (c) Authorization Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall appoint a Director for the Unit from among career members of the Foreign Service. (d) Limitation on position The establishment of the position of the Director of the Unit pursuant to subsection (c) shall not result in an increase in the overall full-time equivalent positions within the Department. (e) Responsibilities The Director shall be responsible for coordinating and overseeing the activities of RCOs in order to— (1) improve United States responsiveness to activities, strategies and tactics of the PRC; (2) ensure that RCO program activities increase the knowledge, understanding, and trust of the United States by relevant target audiences; (3) identify gaps in United States engagements regarding PRC cross-cutting activities; and (4) manage hiring for RCO positions. (f) Regional china officers (1) Qualifications The Secretary shall select and assign RCOs from among Foreign Service Officers who have expertise related to the PRC, including in the forms of prior experience working in or on the PRC, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, and proficiency in Mandarin language. (2) Geographic placement Of the total number of RCOs in the Unit, there shall be no fewer than two Regional China Officers assigned to United States diplomatic posts associated with each of the following bureaus of the Department: (A) The Bureau of African Affairs. (B) The Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. (C) The Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs. (D) The Bureau of International Organization Affairs. (E) The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. (F) The Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs. (G) The Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. (g) Sunset provision The requirement to maintain the Unit and the Regional China Officer Program under subsection (a) shall expire on the date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. (h) Definition In this section, the term ally means only— (1) a member country of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; or (2) a country designated as a major non-NATO ally pursuant to the authorities provided by section 517 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2321k).