H.R. 3307 — Eastern Mediterranean Gateway Act

This section sets forth nine congressional findings regarding (1) the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), launched at the 2023 G20 Summit as an alternative to China's Belt and Road Initiative; (2) the strategic importance of the Eastern Mediterranean, including the U.S.-founded 3+1 framework with Greece, Israel, and Cyprus; (3) energy projects such as the Great Sea Interconnector, Gregy Interconnection Project, Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector, and Eastern Mediterranean LNG terminals; (4) Cyprus, Greece, Egypt, and Israel as key U.S. partners; (5) the need for enhanced defense, security, educational, and cultural cooperation; (6) Presidential Determination 2025–03 on defense articles and services to Cyprus; (7) U.S. policy under the Israel Relations Normalization Act of 2022 to expand the Abraham Accords; (8) India's strengthened ties with Greece, Israel, and Cyprus; and (9) the Eastern Mediterranean's role as a hub for IMEC.

This section states the sense of Congress that (1) the United States should recognize the significance of diplomatic initiatives such as the Greece-Cyprus-Israel-US “3+1” format, the East Mediterranean Gas Forum, and the Abraham Accords and maintain its leadership role in these initiatives; (2) the United States should continue to actively participate in the initiatives of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum; (3) the United States should support energy and transportation infrastructure, connectivity initiatives, defense cooperation, and other forms of integration in and around the Eastern Mediterranean region as a key gateway linking three continents; (4) the United States recognizes the unique role of Eastern Mediterranean countries as both a distinct subregion and a central connector within the broader India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC); (5) the “3+1” diplomatic initiative should resume with a meeting of the Secretary of State with the Ministers of Israel, Greece, and Cyprus; and (6) the statement of policy in section 203 of the Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Partnership Act of 2019 should guide the Secretary of State in promoting connectivity between India, the Middle East, and Europe, including participation in the trilateral dialogue on energy, maritime security, cybersecurity, and protection of critical infrastructure conducted among Israel, Greece, and Cyprus.

This section authorizes the Secretary of State to institutionalize multilateral strategic dialogues between the United States and India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) countries—including dedicated formats with Eastern Mediterranean countries that participate in bilateral U.S. strategic dialogues—and requires the Secretary to prioritize the Eastern Mediterranean region in U.S. foreign policy, focusing on energy security and defense cooperation with countries in the region.

This section directs the Secretaries of Energy and State (and, as applicable, Homeland Security) to submit the following reports and briefings to the appropriate congressional committees: (1) not later than one year after enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, a report on the implementation and effects of this Act, including updates on energy projects and defense cooperation carried out under its authorities; (2) not later than one year after enactment, a briefing on each multilateral initiative between the United States and IMEC countries; (3) not later than one year after enactment, an analysis of insights from the Cyprus Centre for Land, Open Seas, and Port Security (CYCLOPS) as a potential model for broad-based multilateral cooperation; and (4) not later than one year after enactment, a report on the cost, steps, and feasibility of creating bilateral programs with Eastern Mediterranean countries modeled on specified U.S.-Israel programs—namely, the Binational Agriculture Research and Development Fund; the United States-Israel Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (including projects relating to homeland security and cybersecurity); the United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation; and the United States-Israel Science and Technology Foundation—and expanding those U.S.-Israel programs to include other Eastern Mediterranean and IMEC countries.

This section establishes definitions for terms used in the Act. It defines (1) appropriate congressional committees as the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; (2) Eastern Mediterranean country as Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, or Israel; and (3) IMEC country (i.e., India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor participants) as the European Union, Germany, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, India, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, or any other country designated by the Secretary of State.