据美国之音12月12日报导，美国国会参议院11日以84票赞成、13票反对的投票结果，通过2021财年国防授权法案。法案8日已在众议院以压倒性多数获得通过。法案在参议院获得通过后，还需川普（特朗普）总统签署才能正式生效。
参议院多数党领袖麦康奈尔（Mitch McConnell）在法案投票前说：“法案将让我们的部队做好威慑中国（共）的准备，并在印太地区展现强有力的姿态。”
作为威慑中共的重要组成部分，国防授权法将启动一项新的 “太平洋威慑计划”（Pacific Deterrence Initiative），并在2021财年为这个项目拨款22亿美元，以加强美国在印太地区的威慑和防御姿态以及深化与盟友的合作。
报导说，这项新计划效仿2014年设立的、旨在协助北约盟友应对俄罗斯的“欧洲威慑计划”。
“太平洋威慑计划”将在印太地区开展多项活动，包括：现代化和加强美国军事力量存在；开展联合部队演习、训练、试验和创新项目；改善基础设施，以提升美军的响应能力和弹性；建设盟友和伙伴的防御安全能力与合作等。
参议院军事委员会主席、共和党参议员Jim Inhofe和资深成员、民主党参议员Jack Reed早前曾撰文说，“太平洋威慑计划”的目的是只给北京留下一个结论：你们在军事上不可能赢，所以根本试都不要去试。
文章表示，“太平洋威慑计划”将把资源集中于关键的军事能力缺口上，以此实现作战平台的现代化，提升美国在印太地区对中国的威慑能力。
国防授权法要求国防部长在明年2月告诉国会实现“太平洋威慑计划”目标所需资源，并在每年提交年度报告。
除了“太平洋威慑计划”外，2021财年国防授权法案，涉及中共或与中共有关的条款近40项，涵盖军事、技术、学术、经贸等各个领域，反映中共所构成的全面挑战。
议员们说，这些条款旨在威慑中共的“恶意行为”，确保美国的战略竞争优势地位，保护美国免遭渗透。
法案要求总统制定一项“全政府战略”（whole-of-government strategy），向中共施以代价，以遏阻中共的工业间谍活动和大规模窃取个人信息的行为。并要求国防部确立保护国防敏感知识产权、技术及其他信息的政策和程序，限制国防工业雇员和前雇员直接为中共企业工作。
法案还要求限制国防部向设有孔子学院的美国高校提供拨款，并要求确定在美运营的中共军工企业的清单；禁止向香港警方出口防务装备，同时限制中共从世界银行获得援助等。
法案还提出美国国防部在海外永久性部署新武器装备和部队前，需考虑东道国使用华为和中兴等“有风险”的5G或6G网络、服务和设备所含有的风险，以及为缓解这些风险需要采取的措施。
同时法案也支持台湾列为威慑中共的手段，支持继续向台湾出售所需武器，维持台湾必要的自我防卫能力，并与台湾构建医疗安全伙伴关系。
这项年度国防授权法将在2021财年提供7405亿美元的国防预算，内容涵盖军人薪资、装备采购和外交事务等各个方面。在法案随附的报告中，议员们敦促五角大楼将“太平洋威慑计划”列为优先事项，他们预计2022财年对该计划的预算将达到55亿美元。
Chinese Communist Party officers welcome the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fleet command ship to Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, China, for a three-day visit, March 28, 2005. (China Photos/Getty Images)
The U.S. Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 on March 11, which would launch a "Pacific Deterrence Program" to deter the Chinese Communist Party, in addition to nearly 40 other provisions targeting the Chinese Communist Party. These provisions are designed to deter "malicious acts" by the Chinese Communist Party, ensure the U.S. strategic position, and protect the U.S. from Chinese Communist infiltration.
The Voice of America reported on December 12 that the U.S. Senate passed the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act on December 11 with 84 votes in favor and 13 votes against. The bill passed the House of Representatives by an overwhelming majority on December 8. After the bill was passed in the Senate, it still needs to be signed by President Trump (Trump) before it can officially take effect.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said before the vote on the bill, "The bill will prepare our forces to deter the Chinese (Communist Party) and present a strong posture in the Indo-Pacific region."
As a key component of deterring the Communist Party, the National Defense Authorization Act would launch a new Pacific Deterrence Initiative and allocate $2.2 billion for the program in fiscal year 2021 to strengthen the U.S. deterrence and defense posture in the Indo-Pacific region and deepen cooperation with allies.
The new program is modeled after the European Deterrence Initiative, which was established in 2014 to help NATO allies deal with Russia, the report said.
"The Pacific Deterrence Initiative will carry out a number of activities in the Indo-Pacific region, including: modernizing and strengthening the U.S. military presence; conducting joint force exercises, training, testing and innovation programs; improving infrastructure to enhance the responsiveness and resilience of U.S. forces; and building the defensive security capabilities and cooperation of allies and partners.
Senator Jim Inhofe, R-Ohio, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Senator Jack Reed, D-R.I., a senior member, wrote earlier that the purpose of the Pacific Deterrence Initiative is to leave Beijing with the conclusion that you cannot win militarily, so don't even try.
According to the article, the Pacific Deterrence Initiative will focus resources on critical military capability gaps to modernize combat platforms and enhance U.S. deterrence capabilities against China in the Indo-Pacific region.
The National Defense Authorization Act requires the Secretary of Defense to tell Congress in February of next year the resources needed to achieve the goals of the Pacific Deterrent Program and to submit an annual report.
In addition to the Pacific Deterrent Program, the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act contains nearly 40 provisions related to or associated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), covering military, technology, academic, economic and trade areas, reflecting the full range of challenges posed by the CCP.
The lawmakers said the provisions are intended to deter "malicious acts" by the Chinese Communist Party, ensure the U.S. strategic competitive advantage and protect the United States from infiltration.
The bill requires the president to develop a "whole-of-government strategy" to impose costs on the Chinese Communist Party to deter its industrial espionage and large-scale theft of personal information. It also requires the Department of Defense to establish policies and procedures to protect defense-sensitive intellectual property, technology and other information, and to restrict defense industry employees and former employees from working directly for Chinese Communist companies.
The bill also calls for restrictions on DoD grants to U.S. colleges and universities with Confucius Institutes and requires the establishment of a list of Chinese Communist Party military-industrial enterprises operating in the United States; a ban on exports of defense equipment to the Hong Kong police, and restrictions on Communist Party assistance from the World Bank, among other things.
The bill also proposes that the U.S. Department of Defense consider the risks associated with the use of "at-risk" 5G or 6G networks, services and equipment, such as Huawei and ZTE, in host countries before permanently deploying new weapons, equipment and forces overseas, and the measures needed to mitigate those risks.
The bill also supports Taiwan's inclusion as a means of deterring the Chinese Communist Party, the continued sale of needed weapons to Taiwan, maintaining Taiwan's necessary self-defense capabilities, and building a medical security partnership with Taiwan.
This annual National Defense Authorization Act would provide a $740.5 billion defense budget in fiscal year 2021, covering everything from military pay to equipment procurement and foreign affairs. In a report accompanying the bill, lawmakers urged the Pentagon to prioritize the Pacific Deterrence Program, for which they expect a $5.5 billion budget in fiscal year 2022.