Romney, Kaine Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Target China’s Maritime Militia

WASHINGTON— U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), Ranking Member of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific, and Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), Chair of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower, today introduced bipartisan legislation that provides the administration with the authority to sanction foreign adversary entities that provide support to China’s maritime militia. The Targeting Illicit Disruption and Encroachment in Seas (TIDES) Act aims to expand our toolkit to respond to China’s use of its maritime militia to exert excessive territorial claims, harass U.S. ships and those of our partners in the South China Sea, and carry out illicit fishing activities.

“The Chinese Communist Party uses its maritime militia, disguised as commercial fishing vessels, to illegally expand its reach in the South China Sea,” said Senator Romney. “By providing the necessary authority to sanction the entities that provide support this militia fleet, Congress can equip the administration with a tool to send a message that the United States will not allow China’s increased aggression in the region to go unchecked.”

“Ensuring freedom of navigation is critical to our national security, the security of our allies, and the global economy. But over the past decade, the People’s Republic of China has sought to extend its control in the South China Sea by expanding its maritime militia,” said Senator Kaine. “That’s why I’m joining my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan legislation to provide the President with new authority to sanction foreign entities that support informal maritime militias, and help ensure our seas remain free and open.”

While it has existed for decades, China’s maritime militia has ramped up its operations over the last decade to aid CCP efforts to take control of territory and engage in harmful illegal, unregulated fishing in the South China Sea.  The militia often engages in blockades of trade and supply routes and dangerous maneuvers, like ramming and deploying water cannons, against other vessels in an attempt to prohibit or encumber lawful maritime transit—including by U.S. vessels. In June, Senator Romney introduced the TIDES Act as an amendment to the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).

Full text of the TIDES Act can be found here.