Sens. Kaine, Romney Seek To Deter China's 'Maritime Militia'

Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Mitt Romney, R-Utah, introduced a bill that would allow sanctions on foreign adversaries' "maritime militias," saying the aim is to end China's use of military vessels disguised as commercial fishing ships to take over disputed territory in the South China Sea.

The Targeting Illicit Disruption and Encroachment in Seas, or TIDES, Act, provides the administration with sanctions authority as tensions escalate in that part of Asia. Kaine is the chair Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower, and Romney is the most senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific.

"The Chinese Communist Party uses its maritime militia, disguised as commercial fishing vessels, to illegally expand its reach in the South China Sea," said Romney. "By providing the necessary authority to sanction the entities that provide support to 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."

In addition to asserting excessive territorial claims, China's maritime militia has harassed ships and carried out illicit fishing activities, according to a Thursday press announcement about the bill.

"Ensuring freedom of navigation is critical to our national security, the security of our allies, and the global economy," said Kaine. "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."

Chinese's use of the disguised vessels is not new, but the country has been increasing its operations to take control of territory and conduct unregulated fishing in the South China Sea, according to the announcement.

"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," the announcement states.

Romney introduced the TIDES Act as an amendment to the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act. It provides that the president may impose the sanctions to an entity determined to have "materially" supported the maritime militia of a foreign adversary including by providing financial, technical or logistical support.

In June, G7 leaders criticized Beijing's "dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia in the South China Sea and its repeated obstruction of countries' high seas freedom of navigation."

Attached to the senators' press announcement is a copy of a Guardian news article from June calling China's maritime militia a "shadowy armada."

More recently, a September "60 Minutes" report that was filmed in August captured the moment a Philippine Coast Guard ship was hit by a Chinese ship in the contested waters and surrounded by fishing vessels.