Transatlantic Growth Enterprise Act

The bill orders the Secretary of State, working with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and other agencies, to set up and run a program called the “Transatlantic Growth Enterprise.” This program would focus on specific “Enterprise countries,” named in the bill as the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, and Bulgaria, plus any other Central or Eastern European countries the Secretary later adds. The program’s goals include making U.S. relationships with these countries stronger, especially with governments that share similar views with the United States. It seeks to expand business-to-business ties between U.S. companies and key economic and security sectors in these countries, including by working with chambers of commerce. It also aims to grow cooperation on energy, including nuclear energy, build stronger people-to-people connections, and deepen security cooperation to counter Russian influence and aggression and to limit the growth of China’s private sector role in these countries. The Secretary of State is directed to hold meetings at least twice a year with stakeholders from participating countries. These meetings should include, when possible, government officials, business leaders, and civil society representatives to discuss goals and priorities. The bill limits the program so it cannot work with government officials in countries that the Secretary determines are undermining U.S. interests by working with Russia or China in certain ways, or by undermining democracy, such as by allowing Russian or Chinese police or military forces to be stationed on their territory. The bill requires the Secretary to submit an initial implementation report 180 days after enactment and then every year after that. These reports must describe the program’s activities, assess progress toward its goals, and suggest future initiatives. In addition, within one year of enactment, the Secretary must send Congress a separate energy strategy report covering current energy cooperation, dependence of Enterprise countries on Russian and Chinese energy sectors, opportunities for energy projects and infrastructure, and what funding, legal authority, and private-sector actions would be needed to pursue those opportunities.

This bill focuses on a region that plays a major role in NATO and European security. By creating a formal program, it gives the U.S. government a structured way to work with Central and Eastern European countries on trade, investment, and security issues. This could affect how closely these countries align with the United States compared with Russia or China. Energy is a central part of the bill. Many of the named countries have relied on Russian energy supplies, and some are also engaging with Chinese energy companies. The required energy strategy and focus on energy projects and infrastructure could influence how quickly these countries diversify their energy sources and what role U.S. companies and technology play. The reporting and meeting requirements are meant to give Congress and stakeholders regular information about progress and needs. The real-world impact will depend on how the State Department designs the program, which projects it chooses to support, how much funding Congress later provides, and how Enterprise countries respond. Those details are not set in this bill and would become clear only if it is enacted and implemented.

• Directs the Secretary of State to establish and run a “Transatlantic Growth Enterprise” program focused on Central and Eastern Europe.
• Names eight initial Enterprise countries: Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, and Bulgaria, with authority to add more countries in the region.
• Sets program objectives including stronger diplomatic ties, expanded business-to-business links, increased energy cooperation (including nuclear), and deeper people-to-people connections.
• Explicitly targets strengthening security cooperation to counter Russian influence and aggression and to limit China’s growing private-sector presence in Enterprise countries.
• Requires at least two stakeholder meetings per year with government, business, and civil society representatives from participating countries.
• Bars program engagement with counterpart government officials in countries the Secretary finds are undermining U.S. interests by certain forms of cooperation with Russia or China or by undermining democracy, such as allowing Russian or Chinese police or troops to be stationed on their territory.
• Mandates an implementation report to Congress 180 days after enactment and annually thereafter, covering activities, progress toward goals, and recommendations for future initiatives.
• Requires a separate energy strategy report within one year, including an overview of energy cooperation, dependence on Russian and Chinese energy sectors, and a list of potential energy projects and infrastructure opportunities.
• Directs the energy report to assess what appropriations, added legal authorities, and private-sector actions would be needed to pursue listed public and private sector energy opportunities.
• Allows required reports to be unclassified with an optional classified annex for sensitive information.

• The definition of “Enterprise country” lets the Secretary of State add other Central and Eastern European countries later, potentially expanding the program’s scope beyond the initial list.
• The limitation on engagement applies to “counterpart government officials,” which may allow the program to continue working with non-government actors in a country even if certain officials are restricted.
• The required energy strategy report must include assessments of needed appropriations and authorities, which could later be used to justify new funding or legal powers not explicitly granted in this bill.
• Reports are primarily unclassified but may include classified annexes, meaning some details on security and energy vulnerabilities may not be publicly available.